


Blake Belladonna: The Face of Vacuo

by Zeroan



Series: RWBY Superhero Universe [7]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Gen, Gun Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-11
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2019-07-29 16:04:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 92,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16267613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zeroan/pseuds/Zeroan
Summary: Vacuo is in a state of terrible division, and the emergence of the Grimm foretells a catastrophic end. Caught in a web of violence and deception, Blake must find the right way forward to save her nation and fight the shadows that threaten to consume her.





	1. Night of Silence

" _-impossible to describe what we're seeing. There seems to be no end to these – these creatures – the streets below are in chaos, the response from the local police force-_ "

Sienna could remember feeling such horror only once before in her life – the numbness that it brought, and the underlying guilt beneath it. With time, she had come to terms with it all. She had realized the blame had never been on her, though her parents' killers would have had her believe otherwise.

Today was different. Her mind tried to find ways around the truth, but her conscience spoke louder. The guilt was real, and there was no escaping it this time.

"Adam… What have you done?"

She fell back in her chair, fists clenched. She should have killed that lunatic when he came crawling back to her doorstep. He was already a bloody mess – it would have been a mercy, if anything. If she had done that, maybe today wouldn't be such a tragedy.

But there were a lot of things she could have done differently. If she started to wonder… That way rested only hopelessness.

" _We are now receiving reports of the creatures rampaging all over the world – the Atlesian army has been deployed in the capital – numerous sightings throughout Mistral – the Suntide capital of Vacuo-_ "

Sienna looked up at the TV, fully alert again. She felt a lump in her throat as she imagined her nation's capital in the same state as Vale. If she changed to a local channel, what would she see on the screen? The remote lay ominously at the corner of her desk, while her hand remained locked to her chair in a vice-grip.

"Sienna!" Her door burst open, and her advisor, Fennec Albain, came stumbling in, quickly followed by his brother, Corsac. "Have you seen the news?"

Sienna remained silent, letting the twins reach their own conclusion once they looked at the live broadcast.

"What a terrible sight…" Fennec muttered.

"The monsters aren't just in Vale, my leader," Corsac said urgently. "We have received word from our brothers and sisters all over the country. They're everywhere, it seems."

"The big cities seem to be suffering the most," Fennec added.

Sitting straighter in her chair, Sienna put on her serious face. "What's the situation in Suntide like?"

"Chaos. Not as bad as Vale, but…" Fennec paled. "The Council has called in the National Forces to protect the city, or so we've heard."

"And Shade?" Sienna questioned.

"Even worse, and the Council hasn't done a thing about it,"" Corsac said.

Sienna breathed in sharply. "Of course. Those bastards only care about their fat backsides. Everything's fine as long as their mansions aren't burning to the ground…"

She rubbed her eyes for a moment before realizing the twins were staring at her, as if expecting orders. She opened her mouth to bark at them to leave her alone, but the words died in her throat. As easy as it would have been to simply sit in anger and sorrow, her people demanded more of her now. Her _country_ demanded more of her.

"Gather everyone we have here. See if we can't find more people in the vicinity, and call the other bases We need as many hands as we can get," she said, standing up and putting her hands on her desk. "Ready every vehicle we have. Empty our weapon stocks. We're going to Shade."

Fennec jumped. "Surely you don't mean for us to-"

"Yes, I mean exactly that," Sienna said. "If the Council won't move their asses to save their own kin, then we will. Now go!"

The twins scurried out of the room, speaking to each other in hushed tones. Anger boiling in her veins, Sienna turned to look at the TV and scowled at the black masses tearing through Vale. She opened and closed her fingers around an imaginary weapon, numbness gone, guilt forgotten.

Today, she wouldn't be just a helpless witness.

* * *

**BLAKE BELLADONNA**

**THE FACE OF VACUO**

* * *

The night was quiet. In a city as big as Suntide, that could only be something very good, or very bad – it depended on who you were… or who you stood with.

For now, Trifa liked the silence. It was the kind that kept the nerves on high alert; that made of every footstep a ringing bell, and every shadowy corner a hint of uninvited eyes. It was the ever-present fear in the back of the head, and the promise of safety.

This silence was a battlefield. Her battlefield. Conquer it, and it would forever be her fortress.

"Just one crate left, boss."

"Go get it, then." Trifa took her cigarette from her lips and blew out the smoke, letting herself relax somewhat. "Be fast about it. We're not out of the woods yet."

The retrieval pair left their last crate on the sidewalk and, accompanied by an armed escort, went back inside the warehouse. After a nod from Trifa, her remaining companion in the street took the crate and loaded it on the back of their truck, causing it to rock with the added weight.

"Boss, I need to – err - can I be excused for a moment?"

Lowering her cigarette again, Trifa held back a groan. "Can't it wait?"

He looked at her blankly, and the answer couldn't be clearer. Trifa exhaled sharply. It _would be_ a two-hour ride back to the base, at minimum, and she wasn't planning on stopping anywhere in-between.

"Go, Barry." She swiped the air with her hand, showing just how exasperated she was. " _Please_ try to be quiet."

He mumbled something unintelligible and walked away, his steps echoing gratingly along the length of the street. Trifa almost crushed her cigarette between her fingers. She had half the mind to chase after that idiot and drag him back to the truck, his discomfort be damned.

"I'm surrounded by idiots…"

Speaking of… The guy she'd sent to scan the perimeter had yet to return. She'd like to believe that was due to his diligence, but that was wishful thinking. The silence wasn't feeling like much a boon anymore.

Trifa tossed her cigarette on the floor and put it out with her boot, then walked away from the truck and looked around. Had someone followed them? There was always a chance they had been sighted by the police on the way to the warehouse, but that would have been a hell of a coincidence. They had waited a month between hiding the weapons and coming to retrieve them. They couldn't have been more careful.

The only other option was that _someone_ had ratted them out. But who? Even the imbeciles accompanying her knew better than to trust the cops.

Or… she was being paranoid. That was probably it. The situation was stressful, even more so because barely anyone would appreciate her doing her job. Why would they? It wasn't as if she was the backbone of the White Fang. No, no, everyone else's jobs were way more important!

Now she remembered why she had taken up smoking in the first place. Groaning, Trifa turned around and started walking back to the truck to retrieve her pack.

Just as she laid a hand on the door handle, a muffled noise occurred behind her. Trifa spun around, reaching for the gun on her waist, but the street was still empty. She opened her mouth to call Barry – and a surprised yell came from inside the warehouse, followed by three gunshots, and finally an explosive sound of something heavy falling on the floor.

"Shit!" Trifa ran inside the warehouse, shoving the door open with a shoulder, and raised her gun in front of her. The place was dark – why the _hell_ were the lights turned off? – but she could still see, even if a little blurry.

She found the others out cold on the floor next to the weapons crate they had been carrying out. Their journey had been cut short halfway to the door. Trifa crouched next to one of them and felt for a pulse – still there, alive and strong. No blood, at least none she could find.

Walking a little deeper into the warehouse, she found the source of the ruckus. A metal shelf had been knocked over, and all its contents had come down with it and were now scattered on the floor. Under the shelf was the escort, unconscious. His pistol was on the floor next to him, still hot to the touch.

"Boss! What the hell happened?"

Trifa looked back at the door and gestured furiously at Barry. "We've been made! Get the truck started, _now_!"

"What about the-" Before he could finish his sentence, an arm closed around Barry's neck from behind and dragged him away from the doorway. Trifa ran to the entrance, jumping over the others on the floor, but by the time she got out, Barry was already out cold on the sidewalk.

Trifa stood paralyzed for a moment, looking in every direction for a sign of the attacker, but the street was empty. She looked at Barry, then abandoned all hesitation and made for the truck.

"Leaving your friends behind?"

Blood running cold, Trifa turned around and pointed her pistol at the stranger that came out of the shadows. She recognized her in an instant, and her fear turned to anger. " _You_."

Blake stopped, amber eyes taking in Trifa from head to toe before settling on the gun. "Put that down." She shifted her weight onto her left foot, taking a sharp stance. "You know who I am. You know how this goes."

"Do I?" Trifa's finger pressed softly on the trigger. "You should have taken me down when you had the chance, pet. Fighting me face-to-face, I don't like your chances."  
"This isn't personal. I just need you talking," Blake said. "Put the gun down. Make this easy for you and your friends."

"How about you make this easy and _stand still_!"

Trifa pulled the trigger, and the bullet hit Blake right in the forehead. She stumbled back, hands searching for something to hold on to behind her – only for her body to turn into a shadowy substance and dissipate before Trifa's eyes.

Freaking out, Trifa stepped back until her back hit the truck. Her pistol nearly escaped her grasp as she aimed it haphazardly, trying to catch sight of Blake again - and wondering if she was losing her mind - until a solid fabric wrapped around her wrist and yanked her forward.

A fist met her nose, and Trifa went stumbling on the sidewalk and onto the road, losing her gun somewhere along the way. Blake appeared behind her and kicked the gun away.

"Neither of us are getting anything out of this," Blake said, rewrapping her ribbon around her own arm. "Are you done?"

"I'll be done when you're bleeding on the pavement!" Trifa yelled, charging in with a punch. Blake caught her fist, but wasn't fast enough to stop the second, the blow landing cleanly on her chin.

Giving no room for recovery, Trifa closed in again, aiming a knee at Blake's stomach. The attack connected, and she kept driving her knee deeper, watching Blake gasping for air – before she vanished completely and Trifa fell through the sudden emptiness.

She nearly hit the ground before Blake caught her from behind, one hand on her right shoulder and the other on the opposite elbow. "Enough?"

Trifa lunged forward, but that earned her nothing but an explosion of pain on her shoulder. Blake outmatched her both in size and strength, and even if Trifa somehow broke free, she was sure Blake would do… whatever it was that she did before, and catch her again immediately.

"Okay! Fine!" Trifa shouted, ceasing her struggling at once. "I'll talk. Just let me go."

Blake was silent. Trifa could practically fell the heat of her gaze on the back of her neck. A whole minute passed before Blake started to relax her grip, bit by bit, giving Trifa room to move again. The hand on Trifa's shoulder softened – and as soon as it did, Trifa twisted her arm backwards until she had her palm facing Blake's face from below.

Trifa released a string of web from her wrist, and the substance hit Blake in the chin and spread upward to cover the rest of her face. Her first instinct was to let go of Trifa and tear the web from her eyes, but she realized her mistake fast – and still it was too late. Trifa lashed out with three blows, the first driving the air out of Blake's lungs, the second bending her knee sideways and causing her legs to give out, and the last one connecting with her head and finally bringing her down.

"I warned you," Trifa said. "I can fight dirty too."

She watched Blake for movement for a moment before going to retrieve her gun. When she returned, Blake had turned over onto her back and was reaching for her face again, but Trifa stomped on her wrist, pressing it against the rough road. Blake's cry of pain was muffled by the web.

"Well, then. Turns out you aren't such hot shit after all," Trifa said, grinning. " _This_ … is the last time you screw with my people."

She lifted her foot from Blake's wrist and brought it down on her head.

"It's over for you, pet."

* * *

Blake woke up with a mind-shattering headache. That much was expected, and not too out of the ordinary for her as of late. The last time she had come out of a fight with a clear head had been… It was hard to remember. Maybe there wasn't an occasion to remember.

The good side of being desensitized was that, upon opening her eyes, she wasn't nearly as alarmed as she should have been. Waking up in a dimly-lighted, decrepit old room, tied to a chair by numerous layers of spider web, with Trifa glaring at her while leaning against the door, the only exit – Blake had every reason to panic. But she didn't… which was worrying in and of itself, but now was hardly the time to confront that uncomfortable reality.

Though Trifa _was_ trying to drill a hole into her skull with her eyes alone, she didn't seem to have noticed that Blake had woken up yet. Taking that bit of good fortune as far as she could, Blake closed her eyes again and tried to stretch her arms, but they were pressed so tightly to her sides by the web, she could move only her fingers, and nothing more than a couple inches at that.

She could feel the familiar shape of her blade pushing into the flesh of her left thigh. Maybe Trifa hadn't noticed it, or by the time she had, Blake had been far too tied for the weapon to be removed. Or – and Blake thought Trifa was just smug enough for this to be true – she simply believed there was nothing Blake could do with it.

That would be her way out. And once she was free, Blake had plenty Aura left to put up a good fight, even in such close quarters. If she had been prepared for Trifa's trickery before, she never would have been knocked out. The upper hand was undoubtedly hers now that she knew about Trifa's web.

Her plan formulated, Blake opened her eyes again and made a show of struggling against her constraints, then glowering when Trifa left the door to walk closer to her, her lips parting in a grin.

"Look who's awake finally," Trifa said. "I was beginning to think I had miscalculated my strength when I knocked you out." She looked down at Blake and scoffed. "A girl can dream."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you," Blake said. "Didn't you say things were _over for me_? Yet I'm still in one piece. What gives?"

"Believe me, I would have loved to put you in the ground for everything you've done, but I figured that wasn't my decision to make." Trifa's grin widened. "Not that I'm worried. Your punishment now isn't gonna be any better than what I would have done to you, pet."

Blake scowled. Even understanding the meaning behind the insult, Blake hadn't minded Trifa calling her pet before, but with her brain on fire and her pride wounded, she was quickly running out of patience. But she managed to push down her anger and kept focused on more pressing matters.

"So you brought me… here," Blake said, looking around. "A White Fang hideout, I'm assuming. But what's _this_? A broom closet? I know you people aren't exactly well-off, but…"

"I'm sorry, we're not in the business of keeping prisoners," Trifa said bitingly. "You should know that already, seeing as you've made your life mission to make our job a living hell."

"The White Fang's a job now?" Blake raised her eyebrows. "Maybe I got out too soon…"

Trifa's hand rose like a blur, knuckles clashing against the side of Blake's mouth. The blow would have knocked Blake off the chair if it weren't for the bindings. As it was, her head absorbed most of the impact, and it hung to the side for a long while as she recovered. It was during that time that Blake noticed a strange coldness on top of her head.

"Did you…" Blake looked up at Trifa, a quiet rage bubbling in the back of her throat. "Did you take off my bow?"

"I did. Why?" Trifa lowered into a crouch and pouted. "Are you embarrassed? Are you gonna cry? I can get you a hat if you wanna play pretend…"

Blake breathed in sharply. "You shouldn't have done that."

"Oh, come _on_! How pathetic can you be?" Trifa said. "You really are going to cry, aren't you, pet? If I knew the terror of the White Fang was a sniveling little-"

"Call me that again."

Trifa's expression went from annoyance to disbelief to outright rage in the span of a second. She stood up and took a step back, fists clenched, and finally her face displayed only disgust.

"You think you're better than us," Trifa said. "You go out every night and beat the shit out of your own people, and you _still_ think you're some kind of hero. You were sent down by the heavens to save us all, to make the world right! Well, _I_ see through you…" Her lips curved in a scornful smile. "You've been tamed so hard, you actually think you're one of them."

Trifa's laughter filled the miniscule room, and Blake's headache exploded onto new heights. She bowed her head in reflex and closed her eyes, a furious growl rising within her…

She shut it all out and focused on the feeling of the webs covering her, then shut that out too. A tingling sensation caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up, and she threw all her weight back as best she could. The tingling sensation left her body, and behind her chair a shadow clone appeared, standing free.

Trifa jumped back, cursing, as the clone took out its concealed blade. The two of them stared at each other, while Blake sat trapped in between, breathing laboriously. She had learned the intricacies of her Semblance well over the years, but she had never tried controlling a clone while her real body was immobilized, and the strain it put on her was beyond what she had expected.

"K-keep talking," Blake panted. "What, scared all of a sudden? But I'm so p-pathetic…!"

"You're not gonna do anything to me." Trifa's eyes raced from her to the clone. "You can't."

"Yeah?" Blake thrust her head to the side, getting her hair out of her eyes. "Come take a piece of me if you're so sure."

Trifa's expression hardened. She took a step forward – and the clone swung its blade, cutting through the strands of web on the back of the chair. The pressure on Blake lightened immediately, and with a thrust of her arms, she freed herself of most of the web around her upper body.

The clone bent low and cut through the strands trapping her legs, just in time for Blake to kick at the approaching Trifa. Caught by surprise, the spider faunus was sent reeling backwards until she hit the door, while the kickback toppled over the chair with Blake still on it.

Blake rushed to her feet and commanded her clone forward, sending it to collide against Trifa. There was little weight to the action, but it was just enough to keep Trifa in check until Blake got rid of the last webbings on her.

Trifa shoved the clone off her, and it dissolved as it hit a wall. She started towards Blake, only to come to a sharp halt when she saw her standing with her blade out.

"I've run out of patience for you," Blake said, pointing her weapon at Trifa. "You're going to step aside now, or I'll have to demonstrate to you the real definition of _tamed_."

Trifa glared at her with scathing eyes, swaying back and forth on the balls of her feet, and Blake prayed that she folded to her threat. Blake knew many ways of subduing someone with a blade without hurting or maiming, but those required a dexterity and presence of mind which she lacked at the moment.

The tension was cut by the sound of a key turning a lock, before the door behind Trifa was opened from the other side. A small part of Blake was disappointed that the situation wouldn't escalate further. Disturbed, she shushed that voice and took a step backwards, whilst keeping her blade raised and her expression fierce.

A man stood in the doorway, dressed in a pale-red robe-like attire. His head was covered by a hood with holes at the top that permitted two fox ears to breathe free. Hands joined behind his back, he stared intensely at Blake and her weapon, and she couldn't tell whether he was alarmed, or simply curious.

"High Leader Corsac! Finally, you're here!" Trifa exclaimed, turning towards him. "Can we get to offing this bitch now? Look at her! It's bad enough she's a psycho, she's also-"

"Sister Trifa, please. This behavior is unbecoming of a faunus of the White Fang." Corsac raised a hand. "Calm yourself. I assure you, this _unfortunate_ situation will be handled with the utmost care."

"Oh, yes. I'll help you _handle_ it, too." Trifa smirked. "Just give the word, High Leader."

"Sister Trifa!" Corsac chided. "You may leave now."

Trifa curled her fists and scowled at Blake, then stormed out of the room. Corsac waited until her stomping faded in the distance before turning to Blake and nodding apologetically.

"My sincere apologies, Miss Belladonna. If I had known she wouldn't have been able to keep her temper in check, I would have ordered someone other than Trifa to watch over you," he said. "Regardless. I don't believe we have met. I am Corsac Albain, High Leader of the White Fang." He extended a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you at last."

Blake looked at his hand warily. A pleasure, he said. That couldn't be farther from the truth. She lowered her blade, but did not put it away entirely, and still refused to shake his hand.

"Corsac Albain. I've heard a lot about you," she said. "Though I'd imagined that the High Leader bit was nothing but nonsense. Never thought anyone would actually call themselves that."

"Please, think nothing of it. The title is, well, just a title," Corsac said, smiling cordially. "It was only supposed to set me apart from previous leadership. Unfortunately, things ran a little out of my control…"

"Right. Unfortunate," Blake said. "So I take it you're here to judge me on behalf of the White Fang?"

"Nothing like that. There will be no judgement, nor any punishment," Corsac said. "But I'd like you to come with me. There is… someone… who would very much like to talk with you."

Blake felt herself run short of breath. Could this be it, the moment she'd been chasing since Vale? It was hard to believe that her efforts were finally paying off. If she had known all it would take to find Adam was to let herself be beaten up and kidnapped, she would have done so months ago.

A more sensible part of her knew it really was too good to be true. Everything she'd found, every White Fang goon she'd interrogated, every hideout invaded and scoured for clues – nothing pointed to Adam, and that could only mean he truly had left Vacuo forever, or so she'd thought. What were the chances he would be here now?

And if Adam _was_ here… Between the splitting headache and being in a completely unknown environment, Blake was in no condition to confront him. The smart thing to do was to run. Why did she need to confront him anyway? Maybe she never should have gone searching in the first place.

Blake breathed in deeply. "Take me to him."

Corsac looked her up and down curiously for a moment, then gestured towards her blade, and she put it away, though she made sure to leave it close to the touch. He nodded in appreciation and turned, hands still joined behind his back. Clearly, he didn't consider her a threat, and if Blake didn't know better, she would have thought him foolish for that. But they both understood the delicate position she was in, lost in unfamiliar territory and surrounded by enemies with no shortage of spite for her.

She followed Corsac out of the room, and her fears were shortly confirmed as they passed by numerous faunus, some wearing the traditional White Fang masks, while others showed their faces without fear or reservation. Shivers ran down her spine as every one of them stopped to glare at her. She was an intruder, a devil walking in plain sight among them. The only thing protecting her from a vicious attack was Corsac.

On edge as she was, Blake didn't miss the opportunity to get familiarized with her surroundings. She kept her head low and didn't say a word, but her eyes were in constant movement, taking in every corner of the building as they navigated long hallways and descended decrepit sets of stairs. The place seemed to have been abandoned long before the White Fang occupied it, but what purpose it had once served, Blake could only speculate.

As they went down a hallway, Blake and Corsac passed by a door left wide open, and she got an unobstructed view of a large storage room. Inside were a dozen or so faunus opening crates and depositing their contents in carts, which were then rolled away elsewhere.

Blake cringed as she recognized a Schnee-brand energy rifle being dropped into an already sprawling pile of similar firearms. In the most capable hands, that weapon was a conduit of unparalleled devastation. In the hands of any ordinary White Fang goon… Blake shuddered at the thought.

She didn't have long to observe, having to catch up to Corsac before he realized what she was doing, but Blake made a mental note about the room. It was unlikely she would be able to do anything about the weapons today, but that was invaluable information for the future.

Minutes later, Blake and Corsac descended one last set of stairs and arrived at a hall much smaller than the rest of the building. It was completely deserted, leaving their steps to ring out in the eerie silence. Before Blake could question her surroundings, Corsac opened a door and ushered her into an even smaller room, this one also empty save for two chairs and a table at the center. There was another door at the other side, with open windows on either side that allowed in a cold desert breeze.

"Please," Corsac said, remaining at the door. "Take a seat."

Blake stopped in her tracks, fingers twitching nervously near her blade's handle. She looked at the other door, wondering if it was locked, and how quickly she could get to it. Judging from the breeze, it likely led to the outside.

"My apologies. I realize this must be very confusing to you," Corsac said. "This matter requires some amount of _discretion_. It would have been imprudent to have carried this on where everyone could see."

"Is that so?" Blake's eyes narrowed in on the doorknob. With a well-placed swing of her ribbon and blade, she could probably pull the door open forcibly. "I think your friends would have liked to me getting shot in the back of the head, actually."

"Ah. I'm terribly sorry you feel that way, Miss Belladonna, but I assured you, there is no trickery about to take place here," Corsac said. "This will be but a conversation. You are free to go anytime."

The door opened, and in came Sienna Khan. Wearing casual clothes, she stood at the doorway for a moment, unruly hair blowing with the chilly air. She looked imperiously at Blake, rooting her to the spot… And then her expression softened, and she moved away from the door, gesturing at it with an open palm.

"I'll leave the door open for you," Sienna said. "But it's cold tonight. With your permission…"

Robbed of speech, Blake could only stare at her. Sienna waited a moment, then nodded subtly and walked over to one of the chairs.

"Thank you for your help, Corsac," Sienna said. "If you could give us some privacy, that would be greatly appreciated."

Corsac bowed briefly and left the room, closing the door and leaving Blake alone with Sienna.

"Well, then." Sienna looked around, putting her hands in the pockets of her coat. "It's been a long time, Blake. Shall we sit?"

Not waiting for an answer, she took her seat. Her eyes darted to the open door, then back to Blake, as if she were afraid she would leave.

"… _What_?"

Sienna flinched at the outburst. "I'm sorry?"

"You want me to sit down and have a talk with you?" Blake said, backing away. "After _everything_ you've done, you expect me to do that?"

"Yes… That is why I came here," Sienna said. "I don't mean to…" She stopped to rethink her words, then started again. "I realize there's bad blood between us. But I hope we can reach a-"

"Bad blood? Are you out of your mind?" Blake exclaimed. "You tried to kill me!"

Suddenly, Blake's head exploded with a sharp pain on the side of her skull. She closed her eyes and rubbed at the spot, and in an instant the pain was gone – aside from the persistent headache she'd had since waking up.

She opened her eyes and found Sienna staring away from her, almost as if she were ashamed of looking her way. At that exact moment, it became painfully obvious to Blake how tired Sienna looked. Blake knew Sienna couldn't have hit thirty yet, but she looked twice as old, easily. The way she sat, the look in her eyes…

Blake remembered seeing a look like that only once before. Her uncle.

"I'm sorry," Sienna said. "The door is open."

Not quite believing what she was about to do, Blake walked to the door – and closed it. She returned to Sienna and, after casting a long look to make sure she was being genuine, took her own seat.

"Why?"

Sienna looked at Blake, some spirit returning to her expression. "You're going to have to elaborate."

"After all this time," Blake said. "I tried to get to you for years. I followed every lead, I went from one corner of Vacuo to the other, just for a _chance_ to…" She shook her head. "And now you're here, just like that, and I wasn't even looking for you."

"Yes, well. I was the leader of the White Fang, and you, Blake, didn't leave much doubt about what you thought of us. Personal issues aside, that was reason alone for me never to be anywhere near you," Sienna said. "It was mostly personal, I will admit."

"Yes, I imagine it must be _so_ painful for you to meet me face-to-face," Blake replied dryly.

Sienna sighed. "There is nothing I could ever say or do to rectify the mistakes I made. I don't expect forgiveness. But I'm tired of running," she said. "My past will haunt me to the end of my days. Best to come to terms with it now. With you too, hopefully."

Blake bristled, already regretting not having walked away when she had the chance. Sienna didn't expect forgiveness, _of course_ , but she was so clearly remorseful, only a heartless _monster_ would deny her that.

"That's very noble of you," Blake said. "But I think you're forgetting the reason I'm here."

"I regret that too. I've been trying to get a hold of you for months, but you're not an easy person to reach," Sienna said. "Besides, would you ever have accepted an invitation from me? I don't think so – and I don't begrudge you for it."

"That's beside the point! Your _thug_ knocked me out and brought me here against my will, and I should count myself lucky – she wanted to kill me. She said that herself," Blake said. "This doesn't feel like such a heartwarming reunion anymore, does it?"

Sienna opened her mouth to reply, then closed it and looked at the ceiling. After a moment of silence, she made a frustrated gesture with her hands and met eyes with Blake again.

"What Trifa did was reprehensible, but it was beyond my control. I'm not her superior anymore. Haven't been for nearly a year," she said. "But I'll suggest to Corsac for her punishment to be _severe_."

"That's convenient. You're not in charge, but you have the boss's ear," Blake said.

"My relationship with the White Fang has been purely professional since I cut ties with them," Sienna said. "Corsac knew from his brother that I wanted to talk to you. He let me know you would be here as soon as Trifa reported to him. And that's the only favor he's ever granted me."

"So you wouldn't happen to know what your _former associates_ were doing tonight. You wouldn't know they stole a truckload of Schnee weapons. And you certainly wouldn't know the damage they could do with those," Blake said. "No. You've never heard a word about any of that."

Though Sienna tried to hide it, Blake couldn't miss the anger that was starting to show in her expression. Her earlier attitude forgotten, Sienna sat up straighter and linked her fingers in front of her, and Blake had the impression that she had unknowingly entered herself into a debate.

"Do you know where those weapons _actually_ came from?" Sienna asked.

"The SDC," Blake replied immediately. She had checked with Weiss, and sure enough, there had been company reports of the weapons being stolen on the highway during transport.

Sienna shook her head. "Before that. The weapons were produced by a manufacturer company in the northwest. A small, independent, _faunus-owned_ company," she said. "Their business was thriving with the Grimm crisis. Obviously, the SDC didn't like that, so they swooped in and _acquired_ the company. It was all _very_ lawful."

Blake frowned. "And somehow, that justifies theft?"

"I didn't say that. But I find it difficult to feel sorry for the businessmen who left so many good faunus without the means to feed their families," Sienna said. "I've been told those injusticed souls have been welcomed by the White Fang with open arms. As for the weapons, I'm sure they'll be put to good use."

Sienna pointed at the ceiling, and Blake knew exactly what she meant by that. Yet somehow, she doubted the Grimm would be the only thing meeting the deadly ends of the White Fang's newest acquisitions.

"Listen, Blake. I understand your reservations. I can't blame you for being distrustful of me and the White Fang. It's my fault, after all," Sienna said, loosening up. "As leader of the White Fang, I cultivated a culture of hatred and violence. We saw the fruits of that in Adam. It would be easy for me to say that he was lost from the very beginning, but…" Her face twisted into a grimace. "He didn't become the monster he is today all by himself. Maybe if I had been less angry – if I had shown him a kinder path, like my…"

Sienna trailed off, her lips making a sharp line as she looked away, and despite her every reservation – despite everything – Blake found herself pitying the woman. Monster or not, Sienna had suffered for her own actions as much as Blake had. Maybe she deserved it, but that didn't make Blake feel vindicated.

"My ultimate point, Blake, is that I can't run from reality. I refuse to," Sienna said. "I've made victims. Plenty. And that's not something I can justify anymore. But what I can do is try to make up for it."

"That's… That's good," Blake said hesitantly. "But no amount of good will can erase the pain you've caused."

"I know. But it's not only good will that I'm willing to give." A fire sparked behind Sienna's eyes. "I've changed, but I haven't forgotten the experiences I've had, and what they taught me is that change only comes from _decisive_ action. If you want something to come true, you need to give everything you have in you. And even then, sometimes that's not enough. That's why I need you."

Sienna reached inside her coat and brought out a pamphlet. She put it on the table and pushed it towards Blake, and all Blake could do was stare at it in stunned silence.

**SIENNA KHAN**

**THE OLD FACE OF VACUO**

**VOTE FOR SECURITY AND UNITY IN GRIM TIMES**

"I assumed you'd heard. With the nightly habits you keep, you must have caught wind early on," Sienna said, looking at Blake hopefully. "I know what you're going to say. I'm the last person in Vacuo who should be made councilwoman, but if you'll give me a chance to elaborate-"

"You _should be_ the last person!" Blake dragged her chair back and stood up. "You should never hold any kind of power again _in your life_!" She turned away, shaking her head in disbelief. "I should have known. I should have seen this coming! Why else would you give up your position in the White Fang? And you have the nerve to lie to my face that you're sorry!"

"I wasn't lying! Everything I said was true," Sienna said, pressing her hand down on the pamphlet. "I'm running for council to make things better. To mend the country _I helped_ break. And you're right, I don't deserve the power, but _who else_ is going to do what's necessary?"

"I remember you used to think a lot of things were _necessary_."

"Don't you understand that Vacuo is a ticking time-bomb?" Sienna leaned forward, her fingers turning white above the paper. "One year ago, the world saw something it can never unsee. And while you were busy saving Vale, our country was on the brink of collapse. Do you know how many people died that day? Do you know how many more would have died if I hadn't rallied the White Fang to protect them?"

Blake's eyes widened. "Are you seriously trying to guilt-trip me for-"

"No! No, Goddamnit!"

Sienna's voice echoed on the walls, followed by an eerie silence that was only cut by the wind outside. Blake stood, fingers trembling around the handle of her blade. Her headache was but an afterthought compared to the deafening drumming of her heart.

"I'm sorry." Sienna's shoulders dropped, and she let go of the table entirely. "I don't claim to be a hero, or to know half as much about the Grimm as you do. But what I'm sure of is that they will be Vacuo's ruin, unless we do something about it before it's too late."

"And what's your plan?" Blake asked. "Steal every weapon you can find? Turn hundreds of angry, vengeful faunus into an army?"

"No. That's just a preventive measure," Sienna said. "The real solution is unity between faunus and humans. Until we have that, we will keep tearing each other down, and sooner or later, the Grimm will come to finish us off."

Blake grinned. "And you're going to bring the people together?"

"I have the faunus' trust. _You_ have the humans'," Sienna said. "We can do this together, Blake. Please, join me."

In an instant, all of Blake's fury seemed to fade to nothing, leaving her with only a cold sensation inside her chest. She could feel the wind again, coming in through the windows, brushing against her skin, her ears…

"I'll die before I join your campaign," Blake said. "We're done here."

Sienna opened her mouth, but whatever she said, Blake didn't listen, walking to the door and nearly shoving it open. She let the wind slam it shut behind her and kept walking, without an idea of where she was or where she was going.

Blake ripped a strip off her shirt and wrapped it around her ears, and on she marched, into the darkness.

* * *

One hitched ride to the city and a short nap on the subway later, Blake was back home – or the closest thing she could call home these days.

She had first come across the church two years ago while scouring the city for a particularly ruthless White Fang member who had gone rogue. She hadn't found the man, but the top level of the church had been a discovery well worth her time. The ceiling was low and there wasn't much usable space under it, but it made for an excellent place to sleep in, be it summer or winter.

Blake liked it most for how good of a hiding place it was. Her disrupting the White Fang's operations for so long had earned her a great number of enemies. She had never been attacked in her sleep before, but Blake knew that was only because no one had been persistent enough to track her down yet. No measure was too much to ensure her safety.

Of course, it wasn't only her enemies she was hiding from… But she liked to keep that bothersome piece of reality locked away in the confines of her mind. Thinking about it only made her life harder.

Today, Blake couldn't be gladder about the solitude. Climbing on the side of the church, she quickly reached the roof and pushed aside a loose tile, then dropped through the hole it left. The floor creaked under her feet when she landed, and dust fell from the ceiling in front of her eyes.

She made her way to the pile of cloth she had fashioned into a bed and sat down, closing her eyes and taking the silence. The headache was mostly gone now, as was the anger and shock, but the cold remained, lodged in her heart like a blood-sucking parasite.

Sienna bothered her. What she was trying to do bothered her. Was she lying, was she being truthful – where fell the balance? But Blake wouldn't be so shaken if Sienna was her only worry.

Things wouldn't be so complicated if she had used her blade when she had the chance.

Lying down, Blake closed her eyes, and the last thing she heard as the morning dawned outside was the sound of a train that wasn't there.


	2. Breathe

Blake knew she had slept too much as soon as she woke up, a bright ray of afternoon sunlight sneaking through a crack in the ceiling and falling on the floor just beside her face. She closed her eyes and rolled over, shuddering as a strained and tired sensation burned through her body and fizzled out.

Her headache was gone, so that was good. She didn't feel any lingering pain from her fight with Trifa either. Her relief was brief, as it reminded her of the events of the previous night. The White Fang, the stolen weapons she'd failed to recover, and Sienna.

_Sienna_. Blake wished she could just fall back to sleep and forget about everything.

That would remain only a dream, as a vibration occurred near her leg, accompanied by an incessant buzzing noise. It brought her to a sitting position fast, kicking aside what little cover she had and fetching her Scroll from her pocket.

Before she took the call, her eyes stopped on a breaking news notification – _Former White Fang leader declares bid for councilmanship._ Her heart fell to her stomach as she realized Sienna had been completely serious. Blake had held a small hope that, once she had refused to join the campaign, Sienna would drop her plans. But nothing was ever that easy…

The buzzing brought her back to reality, and she brought her Scroll to her ear. "Hey."

" _Blake!_ " Pyrrha's voice came through loudly, followed by an angry muttering of what Blake assumed was mistralian. " _Do you know how long I've been trying to talk to you? And my texts, you didn't even read them?_ "

"I'm sorry, I overslept," Blake said. "I had a rough night."

" _I assumed so, I just didn't know how much. You told me you about your mission, remember? And I told_ you _to check up with me after so I'd know you were okay! You promised._ "

Pyrrha didn't speak for a while, and Blake was left to feel terrible as she realized that, indeed, she had forgotten about that promise, and she'd had a long time to call Pyrrha too. Although, if she was being honest with herself, she might have remembered during her return to Suntide… but a part of her might have wanted nothing to do with Pyrrha – or any of the Hunt, for that matter – after what she had gone through. In her vulnerable state, she might have listened to that voice when she never wouldn't have otherwise.

" _I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so angry with you_ ," Pyrrha spoke again, sounding much closer to her usual composed self, which only made Blake feel worse. " _The last thing you want is to have someone grilling you, probably._ "

"No. Don't apologize. You're right, I should have at least texted you, even if I was drained," Blake said. "I'm sorry I was so selfish."

" _I'm just glad you're okay_." Pyrrha sighed. " _You are okay, right?_ "

"Yeah. I'm fine."

" _Good, because I was about to hop on a jet to Vacuo to find you. Well, not_ find, _exactly - I may have traced your Scroll's location. Don't worry, I'm turning that off right now!_ "

Blake was glad they weren't in a videocall. She doubted she would have been able to hide how touched she was that Pyrrha cared that much about her. Not that she was too proud, but it would have been a little awkward if Pyrrha saw her face…

Blake wondered if Pyrrha paid that much attention to all her friends.

" _Alright, that's done_ ," Pyrrha said. " _So now that I know you're not dead… Might your prolonged recovery have anything to do with a certain terrorist becoming a politician?_ "

"You know about Sienna."

" _It's all over the news. Did you know before, or…?_ "

"I didn't." Blake paused, pursing her lips in displeasure. "No, I did know. Sort of. I heard rumors, and I knew something was in the workings because of the way the White Fang has operated since Vale. It was obvious, really, but I guess I didn't want to believe."

" _I can't blame you for that, what with your history with Sienna. You must be feeling… I can't really imagine how you're feeling,_ " Pyrrha said with a clear concern in her voice. " _Blake, what happened last night?_ "

Blake rubbed her forehead, contemplating how to navigate that topic. If Pyrrha learned how she had been beaten and kidnapped, wounded pride would be the least of Blake's issues. Pyrrha would probably take that jet to Vacuo after all, and who knows when she would decide to trust Blake to be on her own again.

"I went to disrupt that operation I mentioned, the one with the stolen SDC weapons," Blake said. "Well, one thing turned into another, and I ended up in a White Fang base. Sienna was there. We talked, and she told me about her plans. She… also asked me to support her campaign. Publicly."

" _She did?_ " Pyrrha said, bewildered. " _I suppose it makes sense… You are a hero of sorts in Vacuo these days, aren't you?_ "

" _Of sorts_ is right. People don't know me, Pyrrha." Blake shook her head. "You wouldn't understand unless you lived here."

" _You're a public figure. You have sway with people, whether you like it or not_ ," Pyrrha said." _Sienna's smart – she knows she's way too infamous to gain votes from anyone but the most radical of faunus. But with someone like you attached to her cause…_ "

"You don't have to explain it to me. It doesn't matter anyway, since I'm _not_ going to support me," Blake said. "Nevermind how she hurt _me_ personally. She killed her own uncle! I would sooner elect a Beowolf than her. At least then I wouldn't have to worry about _when_ she went berserk."

" _Okay. I understand. I never thought you would support her, obviously,_ " Pyrrha said. " _So what happens now? I know you're not going to sit still and let things play out. You could declare that you're_ against _her. That would put a dent in her campaign. And, if you really want to take her out of the running, you could tell the world what she did._ "

That was the easiest answer, and Blake would be lying if she said she hadn't thought about it. She _wanted_ to take that option, really. But she had no proof – and that was a more complicated problem than it first appeared.

If Blake told Vacuo that Sienna had killed her own uncle, even if she had no proof beyond her words, people – humans, mostly - would believe her regardless, for no other reason than they wanted to. She would be presenting them with a reason to tear Sienna down. And as much as she hated Sienna, the thought of her being discredited and cast out _and very possibly more_ by a human mob did not sit well with Blake.

No, she would not open that door. Sienna had already caused enough harm to their brothers and sisters on her own. Blake had to make sure her punishment wouldn't hurt anyone else.

"I don't know what I'm going to do," Blake said. "But you're right – I'm not going to let Sienna get what she wants."

" _You can count on my help_ ," Pyrrha said. " _As a foreigner, and a former agent of Beacon, I don't think it would be right of me to oppose Sienna publicly… But as a friend, I can back you up. Just give the word and I'll help you however you need._ "

Blake stayed silent for a moment, trying to think of a way to refuse Pyrrha's help without offending her. When she couldn't come up with anything, Blake went for the next best option, which she surely would regret later.

"Thanks, Pyrrha. I'll keep that in mind," she said. "Anyway, I've gotta go. I'll check up with you again tomorrow, okay?"

" _Okay! Be safe, Blake._ "

Putting down her Scroll, Blake ended the call and breathed a sigh of relief. Things were complicated enough without Pyrrha getting involved. And if she brought the others with her, it would be even worse…

But there was no time to worry about that. If Sienna was to be taken down, Blake needed to get to work quickly. A little more than a month was left until election day, but with foes like Sienna and the White Fang, that was preciously little time to act. Coupled with the fact that she had never delved into the realms of politics before, Blake had her work cut out for her.

At least she knew where to start. To stop Sienna, she would need to learn everything she could about her. Not only Sienna, Blake would have to study her allies and opponents too. Only when she had a clear idea of the situation would she make a move.

Picking up her Scroll, Blake found that article from before and opened it. She couldn't think of a better starting point than analyzing Sienna's public campaign. If she were lucky, there would already be something there that she could turn against Sienna and end her plans before they gained any traction.

But who was she kidding? Life was never that easy.

* * *

" _Is this some kind of joke? Surely, Ms. Khan, you can't be serious! What's the_ real _reason you've called us all here?"_

" _This is far from a joke, Mr. Nelson. Every word you just heard from me was meant with the utmost sincerity – and seriousness. I am running from Council. You are here to report on it." Sienna paused, her eyes scanning the crowd behind the cameras. "And when I win, you'll be there to report on that too."_

_Her resolute expression didn't falter, and neither did her gaze, even as the blinding white of dozens of flashes showered her and the city hall behind her. The uproar that followed lasted nearly a minute, the reporters all asking questions at the same time, raising their voices more and more in an effort to be heard above the others._

" _Ladies, gentlemen. Please." Sienna raised a hand. "I told you I would answer all your questions, but for that I need to actually hear them." She waited patiently as the reporters quieted down, then pointed to one of them. "How about you start, Miss…"_

_The reporter, a young woman with tiny antlers atop her head, jumped and raised her microphone, having been mostly quiet during the uproar. "Meagan, ma'am. I mean, Meagan Verid – with the Vale News Network."_

" _Ah. I didn't recognize you. No surprise there." Sienna scanned the crowd. "No surprise about your network either. You must feel very… alone, in this crowd."_

_She smiled at Verid, and the rest of the reporters fell into an uncomfortable silence. The lone faunus reporter looked stunned, spinning her microphone nervously in her hands. Only after a few seconds did she notice the silence, and with a little nod, she took a step forward and faced Sienna._

" _Thank you, Ms. Khan," she said, steadfast. "There any many questions I would like to have answered, but I'll start with something I know we all have in mind. As the former leader of a known terrorist organization – the White Fang – how can you be allowed to run for any level of political office, let alone the highest in the country?"_

_A brief muttering of approval rose from the small crowd, which only emboldened Verid further, her eyes fixed attentively on her interviewee's face. If Sienna was bothered by the question, she didn't show it – if anything, she seemed to be pleased, if her smile was anything to go by._

" _I acknowledge my former allegiances are highly questionable, and I'm sure I will come under great scrutiny because of them," Sienna said. "Suffice it to say, I've been cleared by all the responsible parties. I welcome you all to investigate those matters with fervor. It's in the people's best interest, and, on a more selfish note…" She interlaced her fingers and gave a little shrug. "I went through a lot to get cleared. The trials and tribulations – there's a reason I'm joining the race so late. I would be a little upset if all that went unnoticed!"_

_Her response didn't seem to do much to quell the reporters, and Verid was quick to capitalize on that. "Pardon my bluntness, Ms. Khan, but officially cleared or not, you're hardly someone the public would trust to govern them – and can you blame us?" she said. "You've been on record before, talking about the White Fang, and you were rather candid about its bloody past. It's barely been a year since you renounced leadership. It could have been twenty years, and still it would be too soon for you to make a move like this."_

_This time, Sienna didn't seem too pleased, although she looked more troubled than angry. She took a moment to think, her gaze straying from the crowd before she looked at the reporters again, righting her stance._

" _You're right. It is too soon. Or it would have been, in regular times. But we can all agree this past year has been anything_ but _regular," Sienna said. "The world has changed. We wake up every morning wondering if today is the day the sky opens up again. And I wonder, when that day comes, will we survive it? Because I don't think we'll be so lucky again. Not Vacuo, that is sure."_

" _If we, as a country, continue as we are, we'll be destroyed," she continued. "We can't count on help from our allies forever. And we don't have heroes – no, we have a bunch of squabbling, spiteful people who will sooner tear each other down than extend an olive branch, even if it means both camps die."_

" _And who's going to do something to fix that? Certainly not the esteemed councilmen we've elected over and over for decades, who did nothing but protect their own hides while people were dying on the streets! Is that what you want for your country?!"_

_Sienna stopped, her face turned red and hands clenched into fists. There was silence except for the flashing of cameras and the occasional passing vehicle. Even the most fervent reporters were struck silent, though the reactions to Sienna's speech were appeared evenly split between positive and negative._

_Finally, Sienna released a deep breath and held up her chin. The look on her face was almost supplicant, even if the spark in her eyes was still very much evident._

" _I know what I did. I know who I was. I will never deny those years I spent as the leader of the White Fang," Sienna said. "Perhaps one day I'll see justice for those years. The White Fang, too. But for now?"_

" _For now, I must ask you to put the past aside, just for a while, so we can work together to fix our country. I want a better, stronger, compassionate Vacuo. A Vacuo not for faunus, not for humans, but for both." She paused. "I believe we can make that a reality. And I hope you'll allow me to be a part of it."_

_As soon as she finished, the crowd came alive again, shouting questions, and other, less pleasant things, at her. Sienna sighed, sweeping her hair back over her forehead, then leaned forward with a tired smile on her lips._

" _Now, does anyone want to talk policy?"_

* * *

With a nauseous sensation sinking to the pit of her stomach, Blake was forced to put her Scroll down and cover it with a pillow. It was all she could do to not toss it away.

Her chest felt tight all of a sudden. So tight. God, she could barely _breathe_. Jumping to her feet, she banged against the low ceiling until she found the usual loose tiles. They went sliding down after she pushed them, then plummeted off the edge of the building and shattered on the alleyway below. Blake didn't care about the noise, or that she wouldn't be able to close the hole later – all she cared about was getting out.

Tears came to her eyes as she felt the chilly evening air brush against her face. She filled her lungs with it, sprawled out on the roof like she'd just crawled out of the ocean. A persistent buzzing rang in her ears, growing louder with every passing second, so loud – deafening – her head about to explode-

And suddenly, silence.

Cold.

Breathing.

Blake sat up, pressing her knees against her chest and wrapping her arms around them. It was over, whatever had happened to her, but the fresh air and quiet did little to soothe the terror that seized her. And the confusion, that was the worst of it – because fear, she could deal with, but not if she couldn't even understand what was happening to her.

How was she supposed to do this if she couldn't even watch a recording of Sienna? She would lose her mind if it happened again. And if they met in person, which was bound to happen eventually? She couldn't.

She simply couldn't.

Once again, things would be so much simpler if Sienna just made a monster of herself. Blake never thought she would be thankful for Adam's cruelty, but she was. For all his manipulations and twisted ideals, at least Blake was always sure she was on the right when they fought.

It figured Sienna would be similar, with how she had molded Adam into who he was now, almost like he was her apprentice. But Sienna was different, somehow. She wasn't gentle, that was sure. But she was smart, patient, and she had all the right ideas. If it had been anyone else running her campaign, Blake would have voted for them in a heartbeat.

If it had been Joshua, Blake would have voted for him.

How would he feel about all of this, were he still alive? What would he say when he saw his niece running for such an important role in their country? He would probably be so proud of her. So relieved that Sienna had found the right path, despite everything.

Blake was sure he wouldn't feel the same way about her.

Maybe giving up was for the best. Who did she think she was, anyway? Some hero, bravely protecting people from voting for someone of their own accord? As if she knew better.

As if she was better.

That was it. She would leave Sienna to her own devices, and stop messing with the White Fang. Leave Suntide – leave Vacuo entirely, maybe. She had a home in Vale, and though it filled her with shame, it was better than-

A strident beeping broke her from her thoughts. Blake looked around, her ears perking up under her bow, until she realize the noise was coming from below. Her Scroll – and suddenly she understood, and without waiting another second, dropped back into her hideout.

She snatched her Scroll in a hurry and looked at the Screen, while with her other hand she searched blindly for her blade. A sudden panic overwhelmed her as she read the data. It had to be wrong, some kind of mistake with the Beacon satellites. A Breach of that size didn't simply appear in a city center without at least a week's warning.

Composing herself, Blake finally found her blade and sheathed it, then hurried over to a corner and pried a plank of wood up from the floor, and retrieved the pistol and ammo hidden under it. She didn't like using guns in general, especially in public, and it had been ages since she'd last run maintenance on this one, but her choices were few and time was not on her side.

Blake loaded up a magazine, then cocked the gun. Hopefully she wouldn't be too late.

* * *

"Here! Pull over, quick!"

The cab started to swerve to the right towards the sidewalk, only to stop and continue forward on the road as the driver saw the mass of people in the street and the red and blue flashing somewhere amidst them. "Are you sure about that, ma'am? I'm not liking the look of things here-"

"I'm sure," Blake said, her fingers tapping restlessly near the passenger door's handle. "I came prepared. Please pull over."

The driver shook his head and made a disapproving noise with his mouth, but pulled over nonetheless. Blake got out as soon as they were stopped, pausing briefly to toss two twenty-lien bills at the driver and tell him to keep the change. Seconds later, she was gone from his sight, somewhere amongst the crowd.

Even with her faunus ears covered, Blake found herself cringing with discomfort at the infernal noise surrounding her. There were too many people to count, all of them shouting without reservation, and on top of that, a siren that rang louder with every passing second, it seemed, trying to drown out the voices. Steeling herself, Blake forced her way through the crowd towards the siren and the flashing lights, shoving people when she had to.

Finally, she broke through the last line of people, only to be met with a yellow-tape barrier. It made a wide circle across the city plaza, and at the other side of the perimeter stood several armored police officers, watching the unruly crowd nervously and shouting back at them.

One side of the yellow-tape perimeter was nearly joined with a tall building – some sort of business center, Blake guessed. Inside was another crowd, this one consisting of businessmen and women, and they too were shouting at the cops that were blocking off their exit.

Peering over the closest officer's shoulder, Blake found the source of the flashing lights, a column of police cars, and a couple of ambulances. Stretchers were being loaded up on the ambulances, but Blake couldn't see the people on them. She looked away and felt a chill as saw an unmoving form on the ground, covered by a black tarp. Then she saw another, and another, three, five, eight-

A sense of dread surged through Blake's body, but it was not because of the what she was seeing, but rather what she had come here for. She could feel it in her bones – the Grimm would be here any moment now.

Shaking off her astonishment, Blake looked at the officer in front of her and gestured at him, but he was too occupied with the people around her to give her any mind. She didn't wait a second longer and lashed out with her ribbon, wrapping it around the officer's arm and pulling on it to bring him closer.

"What the- Hey you! Let go of me right now, or else…!" The officer tried to reach for his holster, but Blake pulled on her ribbon again, immobilizing that arm and grabbing the other with her free hand.

The crowd cheered around her, but Blake ignored them and leaned forward to speak on the officer's ear. "Get these people away from here. If you don't do that _now_ , there are going to be even more dead tonight."

"Are you threatening me?!" the officer shouted. "You don't know who you're speaking to!"

"No, that is _your_ problem."

Blake released him and, as he brought out his gun, slid under the tape and past him, leaving a clone where she just had been standing. She walked to the middle of the perimeter before letting the clone dissolve. By the time she stopped, many in the crowd had already noticed her appearance, and that quickly brought the attention of the officers to her.

"Ma'am, you are not allowed in here!" a cop shouted, approaching her along with two companions, all with guns pointed at her. "This is a crime scene. Leave, or you'll be removed by force!"

"Your crime scene is about to be turned into the scene of a slaughter," Blake said, retrieving her Scroll and holding it up with the screen facing the officers. "I'm Blake Belladonna, Huntress. A Breach will be opening any second now, just above where you're standing now, and Grimm will be coming out of it. I don't know how many – could be five, could be fifty." That was an exaggeration. She wouldn't be nearly as calm if fifty Grimm were about to drop on her. "Do I need to tell you what Grimm do with angry, _delicious_ masses of live flesh?"

The lead officer's face shone with recognition, and slowly he lowered his gun, though Blake noted he still didn't put it away. "Not to disrespect you, Miss Belladonna, but, if there was about to be one of those… attacks, right here in our city, wouldn't Beacon be here to deal with the situation?"

"Nobody knew about this Breach until now. I'm sure Beacon is sending people to help, but they're busy people and they can't be everywhere at once. That's why I'm here." Blake's Scroll started flashing red. "Now could you _please_ evacuate the area?"

The lead officer looked back at his companions and nodded. He spoke into his radio, and after a few seconds, the other officers keeping the perimeter started to wave their arms at the onlookers, which only riled them up more.

Blake looked at the sky anxiously, expecting it to turn red any moment now. She knew the fight would be gruesome regardless of what happened, but she at least hoped there wouldn't be any casualties. From the way the officers were handling the evacuation, that hope seemed pointless thus far.

"Turn back! This area is to be evacuated immediately and orderly!" the lead officer screamed into a megaphone. "I repeat, this area is to be evacuated immediately!"

" _That's bullshit!_ " came a voice from amidst the crowd. " _Crooked pigs! We want real justice!_ "

"There's about to be a Grimm attack! Evacuate _immediately_!"

Blake winced, wishing the officer had said anything but that. It did no good, as though a great number of people took heed of the warning and ran away at once, just as many stayed, and they were angrier than ever.

And then, the officer lost his patience and did something even worse - he reached for his gun and held it high. Blake stepped towards him, but her warning was drowned out by the first gunshot. The second made her step backwards, cursing under her breath and drawing her blade.

The final gunshot was accompanied by a wave of dreadful energy that washed over her. The crowd started to disperse. The pavement was showered by a red glow.

Blake tossed out her ribbon, wrapping it around the lead officer's wrist, and pulled him towards her violently. He fell on the ground mid-travel, his shoulder quite possibly dislocated – but the first emerging Grimm, an Ursa double his height, only shattered the ground he had just been standing upon, and not his body.

From the corner of her eyes, Blake saw more Grimm crashing on the street around her, but she ignored them to the best of her ability, keeping her focus on the Ursa as it came charging at her. She tried attaching her blade to her ribbon for a ranged attack, but her time was too short, and she was forced to somersault over the beast. Her feet found purchase on its shoulders, and she swung low, exercising all her strength to bury her blade on the exposed flesh under the Ursa's chin.

The monster turned to smoke under her, but Blake managed to find her footing gracefully and bounded out of the dark, finishing joining her ribbon and blade. It was just as well, as two Beowolves came leaping at her, claws and fangs at the ready. A flick of her wrist sent her blade into the exposed insides of one's mouth, and the other passed through her shadowy clone and crashed on the ground. A quick and personal stab to the throat did that one in.

Blake looked up, her initial glory kept in check by the sight of the other Grimm in the plaza. They weren't many – no more than ten, by her quick count – but that was only a slight mercy. Though no civilians had been caught, two policemen had fallen already, and the rest had little hope of driving them off with their ineffective firearms. Their bullets harmed more than they helped, bouncing off the Grimm's tough hides and putting everyone close to them at risk.

"Hey!" Blake yelled to the lead officer, who was picking himself up off the ground painfully. "Tell your men to stop shooting! I'll kill the Grimm!"

The officer looked up at her, then pointed at his radio. It was clearly broken – it must have happened when he fell.

"Just – just make sure people don't get hurt!" Blake said. She had no time to kick herself over that.

How many Grimm were left? Seven – the officers must have killed a few somehow. Blake ran towards the nearest one, a bigger Beowolf which was being held down by a barrage of bullets. As she neared it, a stray impact to her forehead nearly sent Blake sprawling.

The monster was about to leap at the officers, but Blake got to it first, crashing her body against its side and burying her blade in it. She fell through the smoke, softened her landing with a roll, and got up again.

Her stomach dropped. There were five Grimm left now, a single Ursa and four Beowolves, but they were all together, advancing towards the business center. The police force had managed to form a barrier between them and the people inside, but that would prove useless when the Grimm inevitably reached them.

Blake could see the people inside. Some knocked against the glass doors, not knowing that getting out would only quicken their demise. Others searched for another exit, but there was none. More were visible at the windows of the upper floors, looking down at the ongoing massacre in horror.

How many people were in that building? Hundreds? A thousand?

Blake closed her eyes. She had one advantage in this situation, one bittersweet factor that could turn the tides in her favor. But a mere Semblance wasn't enough to tear away the attentions of the Grimm from the despair of hundreds of defenseless victims.

And so she took out her pistol, aimed it at the back of the Ursa, and focused on the memory of the sound of a speeding train.

The memory of a snapped neck.

The memory of a golden-eyed devil speaking her thoughts aloud.

She focused on the memory of an abandoned friend.

An abandoned house.

An abandoned family.

She focused on the feel of the gun in her hands…

* * *

" _Three out of three. Not bad."_

_Sienna walked back to her. She looked at the broken shards of glass at the distance, then smiled at her._

" _Who am I kidding? You're a badass, straight-up," she said. "But do you think you can hit that one? The one at the far, far back."_

" _I… I don't know," Blake said. "I can barely see it from here."_

" _Well, yeah. But shooting's not about seeing. It's about… feeling." Sienna snorted. "Or, you know, guts. Whatever sounds less corny."_

_Her smile turned into a frown as she saw the doubt on Blake's face. Blake started to put her gun down, ashamed that she was being such a let-down, but a gentle poke snapped her to attention._

" _I'll help you." Sienna stood behind her, putting her hands on Blake's shoulders. "Just hold it up. Let yourself feel. Breathe in. And when it's time…"_

* * *

She pulled the trigger.

* * *

"… _breathe out."_

* * *

The bullet bounced off the Ursa's back and vanished from view. Slowly, the hulking monster turned, as did the other four, their red eyes falling on Blake with murderous intent.

She tossed her pistol aside and met their stares. The air in her lungs was running short, and her legs felt much too frail to support the weight of her body. A ringing built in her ears.

They charged at her, and Blake charged at them.

She collided head-on with a Beowolf, slashing through its throat in one go. A clawed fist swung through the smoke and hit the side of her skull, sending her spinning, barely on her feet. A stomp of her foot brought her momentum to a halt, and with a powerful thrust, another Beowolf fell.

Step back. Spin. Slash. Slash again. Duck. Stab. Try to find her breath. Another Grimm down.

A mass of black filled her vision, and suddenly she was on the ground, pressed down by a pair of claws. Fangs snapped at her nose, barely kept at bay. On sheer instinct, Blake jerked her head forward, and a flash of pain and red in her vision told her she had made contact with a tooth. The Beowolf drew back, whining, and dissolved as metal pierced its right eye.

Before she could find her bearings, a claw closed around her arm, and Blake was hoisted off the ground like a lifeless doll, only to be slammed back down on the concrete an instant later. She gasped for air, but found none, and down she went again.

She was raised again, and she trashed with the strength she could muster, slashing blindly and kicking and punching – and eventually, something did the trick, as the Ursa dropped her back on her feet. Blake looked up, meeting eyes with the Grimm, and a storm of emotions raced its way up her throat and left her mouth in a hoarse shout.

The Ursa swooped down with an arm and passed through her. It turned halfway and grabbed her, only for her to again disperse between its claws. The creature's red eyes erupted like miniature furnaces as it spun in a frenzy, destroying clone after clone futilely, until its rage grew too big and it stopped to roar at the heavens – and finally, Blake appeared above it and buried her blade on the Ursa's forehead, turning it to smoke.

She fell to her knees, clutching her chest. Faintly, she heard applause around her. After one last attempt to draw in some air, she collapsed entirely, and lost her sight.

* * *

" _Hah! There you go! See, I knew you could do it!"_

_Blake lowered her gun. "It wasn't all me. You helped."_

" _Oh, please. You think I meant any of what I said? It was just nonsense to get you into the right shape," Sienna said. "Trust me, I didn't do a thing. You're the amazing one."_

" _Thanks, Sienna." Blake smiled. "But you're pretty cool, too."_

" _Whatever you say." Sienna turned around, one hand on her hip. "So, uncle? Did I or did I not tell you that she could do it? What do you have to say for yourself, huh?"_

_Joshua crossed his arms, studying Sienna with his eyes for a moment. Then, he looked at Blake and winked._

" _I have to say… I am impressed." His lips curved into a knowing smile. "Very impressed."_


	3. It Follows Her

"This will be over in a second. Please try and follow my finger."

Blake snapped to attention, a wave of sensations crashing down on her. She blinked, trying to make sense of the blurry mess before her eyes, and grasped blindly at the ground under her. Her hands closed around a metallic edge, and she realized her legs were hanging free off it.

Suddenly, the world came into focus. She was sitting in the back of an ambulance, with a woman in a doctor's coat standing in front of her, moving a finger before her eyes. Blake ignored her, looking over the doctor's shoulder to the city plaza behind her.

People. Why were so many people there? Hadn't they all run away – didn't they _know_ better? And the bodies… There were still bodies on the floor. More than before. Recent additions.

The ones she hadn't been able to save.

Those were uncovered. But the others, the ones which had already been there when she'd arrived, were hidden under police tarps. Why? There was a story there. An explanation as to how that Grimm Breach had occurred so quickly nobody had seen it coming.

"What happened here?" Blake asked, startling herself with the sound of her own voice.

The doctor stopped what she was doing and looked at her more closely, a concerned showing on her face. "There was a Grimm attack. You fought them off. You don't remember?"

"I remember _that_. I mean before," Blake said. "How did these people die?"

"I'm sorry, I'm not at liberty to discuss that. Even I if were, you probably know more than me anyway," the doctor said. "But that's not our priority. If you'd please, I would like to conduct a more thorough exam on you to make sure – hey, don't get up!"

Blake ducked under the doctor's arm and quickly slipped past her reach. She put some speed on her steps as she heard the doctor calling for help behind her. A sole policeman reacted to the call, turning away from the crowd to see what was going on. His eyes met with Blake's, and she saw a furry yellow tail rise in surprise behind him, just before she slipped into the crowd.

While she fought her way through the mass of people, Blake tried to get a hold of her scattered thoughts. If she wanted to find out what had happened, she'd obviously need a plan. Talking to the police would probably be the easiest way, but that ship had sailed, although she wasn't all that upset over it. She could simply wait and get the news the same time as everyone else, but by then the facts would be all too twisted and-

"There she is! The woman of the hour!"

A hand closed around Blake's arm, and before she could do anything, she was pulled into a break in the crowd. Suddenly there was a camera on her face, and a middle-aged man was shaking her hand with an enthusiasm so intense it couldn't be genuine.

"Miss Belladonna! I'd like to be the first to thank you for your acts of heroism tonight! If it wasn't for your bravery, many more good Vacuan lives would have been lost to those terrible beasts!" he bellowed. "This city and its servants will forever be in your debt!"

Blake tried to take her hand back, but the man's grip was so strong she could barely move her fingers. If it weren't for her Aura, she would have been in serious pain. She looked at the man's face, trying to figure out who he was. She was sure she knew him, but couldn't remember from where…

"Ah, this was a terrible, terrible tragedy, indeed," the man said, shaking his head at the camera. "But very _convenient_ too, to some individuals, wouldn't you agree, Miss Belladonna?"

He looked at her with a hint of a smile on his lips, as if they both knew something no one else did. Blake shuddered. "Excuse me?"

"You haven't heard the news, then? No, of course you haven't. You're far too busy to waste your time with petty politics!" he said, and smiled at the camera. "Well, allow me to inform you! Earlier today, Sienna Khan, the faunus terrorist leader – apologies, _former_ faunus terrorist leader – announced she's running for Council! Can you believe it? She's got the whole country riled up with some nonsense talk of faunus violence and social inequality – putting the fear of the devil into the good citizens of Vacuo that, if they don't conform to _her_ ideals, the Grimm will descend upon us all!"

He scoffed, then looked at Blake again, his smile never shrinking. Blake's disgust turned into anger as she finally remembered who he was – and _why_ she knew him.

"Now, I'm not suggesting she had anything to do with this awful shooting, or the Grimm attack afterwards, _but_ …" He raised his other hand apologetically. "The timing was very convenient. Don't you agree?"

"No. I don't think this was _convenient_ for _anyone_ , Councilman – except perhaps _you_ , to give you a conspiracy to use as a talking point against your competition," Blake said. "Word of advice – if you're so afraid of being replaced, you should first clean up your innumerous racist policies that have left thousands of faunus without homes and jobs. After that, contribute something _positive_ to the country. Maybe then people will consider reelecting you."

He stared at her slack-jawed, his face slowly turning red, and finally let go of her hand. It was as if she'd just stabbed him in the gut, and Blake didn't break eye contact for a second, an honest smile on her lips.

"Well. I'll take that into consideration," he said, trying to regain his composure. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to go thank the good men and women of our police force for their bravery tonight." His eyes narrowed. "I'm sure _they'll_ appreciate it."

"Please. Don't let me keep you."

The councilman walked away with heavy steps, followed by multiple camera crews. Blake glanced at the few remaining reporters and rolled her eyes, then slipped away before any questions could be thrown at her.

Moments later, Blake finally found a way out of the crowd, walking into a much emptier sidewalk. Still, she found herself the target of many curious stares, and so she kept walking farther away from the crowd – until she came across an alleyway and all but threw herself into it.

She walked a little more so she wouldn't be spotted by any passersby, then pressed her hands to a wall and leaned against it. She needed a moment to breathe and get her thoughts in order.

What was her goal again? To stop Sienna. Right. And yet she was here, recovering from a battle to the death with a pack of Grimm. Somehow, things had gotten more complicated than she had thought possible.

"You did great back there. Really put that asshole in his place."

Blake spun around, and in the same motion drew her blade and raised it before her. Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at Sienna, waiting for her to do something drastic, but she simply took a step back and raised her hands above her shoulders.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have approached you like this. I thought you had changed your mind about me, but…" Sienna's eyes focused on the tip of Blake's blade before she offered her a tentative smile. "You can put that down. I'm not going to attack you, if that's what you're thinking."

Blake glanced at the walls to either sides of them, then raised her blade a little higher.

"Or, do whatever you want," Sienna said, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "I don't mind."

A moment of silence passed. Blake looked over her shoulder towards the other end of the alleyway. There was nothing stopping her from leaving, and if Sienna tried to follow her, losing her would be a simple matter.

Tempting, but that would show just how much control Sienna had over her. Though there was little mystery to that already, with the way she was acting.

Taking a deep breath, Blake put her weapon away and looked Sienna in the eyes. "What gave you the impression I changed my mind about you?"

Sienna lowered her hands. "Well, you did just defend me on live television," she said. "I appreciate that, by the way. It can't have been easy for you."

"I wasn't defending _you_. I was putting down a bigot," Blake said. "If I could have done that without helping you, trust me, I would have. You aren't that much better than Cobalt."

"Now _that_ is a little upsetting. You have to admit he's done far more damage to the country than I have," Sienna said. Her eyes sparked cleverly. "At least I know you'll vote for me over him."

"You're assuming I'm going to vote at all." Blake shook her head. "Why are you here? Don't you have anything better to do, like addressing the media or something? Nothing gets votes faster than a good tragedy. You'd know that."

Sienna's face flashed with anger, and Blake couldn't help but feel a little vindication, knowing she'd struck a nerve.

"I've been talking to the media all day. If I had to deflect one more snide comment from a reporter about my ears or hair or- you get the gist. I would have snapped." Sienna gestured over her shoulder. "My advisor, Fennec, is handling things in my stead. You've met his brother."

Of course. Corsac Albain, current leader of the White Fang. What a convenient connection for Sienna.

"I don't envy that man's job right now. But starting tomorrow, I'll be taking the brunt of the questions again. That will be… something," Sienna said, rubbing her forehead tiredly. "Those Goddamn murderers. If I were a weaker woman, I'd regret getting into the spotlight just now."

"So you know what happened?" Blake asked.

"You don't? Oh, Blake." Sienna sighed. "Three human men, armed to the teeth. They shot at a couple, right there where you fought those Grimm. Busiest street in Suntide. Some other idiot with a gun got involved, then cops, next thing you know…"

Blake's stomach dropped. She had imagined something along those lines, but that didn't make it any less terrible. "I'm guessing they were a faunus couple."

"Close. He was human. She was faunus. So young, too," Sienna said. "He died right away."

Sienna clenched her hands, her fingernails digging into her palms, and Blake could see that was the only thing keeping her from screaming all the anger out of her system.

"Two of the shooters died. The other one got away in the chaos. I'd like to believe the police is looking for him right now, but…" Sienna gritted her teeth. "God, if I got my hands on that monster…"

Blake frowned. Sienna's connection with the White Fang had suddenly become a lot more worrying.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to do anything like that, and as for the White Fang, I'll talk to Corsac. He'll keep them in line," Sienna said. "I do actually mean what I say about mending the country, Blake, and hunting down that human would only set us back even more." She crossed her arms. "Now, you, on the other hand. You, I can trust to do something about this, and do it right."

"Really?" Blake scowled. "Am I supposed to be flattered that you're sending me after a violent murderer?"

"You wouldn't be talking to me still if you weren't planning on doing something," Sienna said. "Blake, can we agree to help each other, just until this mess is fixed? For the poor girl's sake. I don't need or expect anything else from you, but I can't in good conscience rest while that murderer is on the loose."

Alarms blared inside Blake's head. This was how it started. Sienna had a way of convincing people they were on the same side, that they were fighting for the same objective, and it was a true – until that wasn't in her best interests anymore, and then she turned.

It had happened to Blake. It had happened to Joshua. It had even happened to Adam.

But Blake wasn't a child anymore. More importantly, she knew Sienna now, and she wouldn't fall for the same deception again. Being close to Sienna could only be helpful to take her down later. And Blake did want to catch the fled shooter. Sienna wasn't wrong about that.

"Fine. Let's work together," Blake said. "But if you try to make this look like anything more than what it is, then I'll do to you what I did to Cobalt. The difference being that you don't have the privilege and influence to brush me off."

"I expect nothing less," Sienna said, a little smile marking her lips. "Now, catching our killer is not going to be easy. I'd bet an arm he's hiding in whatever stinking hole bastards like him run to when the shit hits the fan, and he won't be coming out for a long while. No one's just gonna stumble into him on the street, that's for sure."

"What about the other two shooters? Do we know anything about them?" Blake asked.

"Aside from they're dead?" Sienna shook her head. "The police took the bodies to their headquarters, to _investigate_. So that's a dead end." She paused. "The girlfriend survived the shooting. They rushed her off to the hospital. I'm going there to see if she's okay – I hope she is – and try and talk to her. If anyone knows anything about the shooters, it's her."

Blake raised her eyebrows at Sienna. "You think she'll talk to you?"

"I don't know. I can be persuasive, can't I?" Sienna said. "Maybe you'd have better luck, though. You don't _look_ so scary." She took a step back. "My car's parked nearby, if you want a ride."

"I think I'll try the police, thank you," Blake replied immediately. "I can take the subway."

Sienna stared at her in silence, a strange look on her face – as if she had known Blake would refuse before she even asked, but had been hoping otherwise anyway. Maybe the years had turned Sienna into a bit of an optimist, after all.

"Alright. If you still feel like giving me a chance later, you can find me at the hospital. Until then…" Sienna laid a hand on Blake's shoulder and, with the gentlest bit of strength, squeezed it. "Take care of yourself, Blake."

She turned and exited the alleyway, and the sound of her quick steps faded amidst the noises of the commotion outside. Blake stood alone, unable to move.

She couldn't shake the feeling that she'd just made a terrible mistake.

* * *

_Before you ask, I'm fine._

_It was just a little skirmish._

_Don't worry about me._

Blake sunk back against the corner of her seat and peered over the top of her Scroll, passing her eyes over the other passengers in the train. Workers returning home after a long day. A married couple with children. Some lonely vagabonds with alcohol on their breaths, which Blake could smell from afar.

Nothing unusual. Just regular people she wouldn't look at twice any other day. But it was all she had to distract herself from the dread she was feeling. The dread, and the shame.

Pyrrha was typing up a response, but after a few seconds, she stopped. Blake had watched that happen several times already, and every scrapped text only made it worse. She waited in fear for the moment Pyrrha found the right words, hoping beyond hope that she'd just let the conversation be.

Because if Pyrrha asked, Blake would have to tell her everything. That she was working with Sienna. That she was way in over her head. That she needed help. Pyrrha, of course, wouldn't waste a second getting on a jet to Vacuo. And then Blake would have to tell her the most painful truth.

_I don't want your help_.

And there it went. She could never take it back.

Blake let her fingers rest and watched the screen, fury and disappointment rising inside her. Why? Why did she have to be so stubborn? If she could just act reasonably for once in her life-

_Okay_.

Pyrrha tried another message a couple more times, then went offline. Blake released her breath, and her head seemed to lighten somewhat, finally.

She hated it, but it was better this way. This was something she needed to do alone.

* * *

There were few places more uncomfortable for a faunus to be in than a Vacuan police precinct. In a country with a majority population of faunus, the profession was nevertheless dominated by humans, and not the most open-minded and charitable kind. The common trait shared by the people they regularly put behind bars, then, did not need to be said – unless you were looking to get thrown in jail too, for disturbing the peace, of course.

If she hadn't seen those injustices happen in front of her very eyes, time and time again, Blake would have thought herself paranoid. After all, it wasn't as if _she_ was in any danger. Her faunus identity was a secret to all but a few people. There were rumors, yet who would believe a word from a lowly White Fang rat?

But Blake knew that all it would take was a moment of carelessness, or a particularly brazen cop, and her cover would be blown. No fancy Huntress title would save her then. If there was one thing the cops and their victims could agree on, it's that there's nothing worse than a faunus trying to pass off as a human.

So as she walked into the precinct and searched around for the morgue, Blake kept her head down and her steps quick, and when an officer looked her way any longer than a couple seconds, she made sure to immediately vanish from sight.

Just being in their midst made Blake feel dirty. She wondered if any – or rather, how many past comrades of her from the White Fang had been held in this very building. How many had ever seen the outside world again?

When Blake descended a set of stairs and finally caught sight of the entrance to the morgue, she breathed a sigh of relief. The hallway was empty, and the ruckus from the police force upstairs had largely faded. She was in the clear.

She started towards the door, reaching to open it, and too late realized her mistake. In her eagerness to get inside, she'd missed the silhouette standing watch in the corner of the hallway, and as the woman came out into the light, she felt a lump form in her throat.

"Miss," the officer said, looking from Blake's hand to the doorknob. Hastily, Blake lowered her hand. "What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry, I…" Blake cut herself short. She couldn't sound guiltier if she tried. She steeled herself and, taking on a firmer tone of voice, spoke again. "I need to get inside the morgue."

"Do you now?" The officer raised an eyebrow at her. "Why, exactly?"

"Because… there's evidence inside. Dead bodies," Blake replied, her voice fluctuating slightly. "They have to be inspected quickly if we want to catch their missing partner."

"They _are_ being inspected. Right now."

Funny, because Blake wasn't hearing anyone on the other side of the door. She didn't mention that to the cop, of course.

"Wait a minute, aren't you…" The officer looked her up and down, her eyes narrowing. "Miss, I'm gonna have to ask you for identification."

"I… I don't have any on me," Blake said. "Look, I'm sorry. I'll just come back-"

"Hey! There you are! Finally, I found you!"

Blake turned around, blood running cold. Walking towards her from the stairs was the same police officer who had spotted her escaping the crime scene. If his face wasn't indication enough of how annoyed he was, the way his tail was swinging erratically behind him certainly was.

Before she could formulate an escape plan, he had reached her and grabbed her by the shoulder. He gave her a little shake and made a discontented noise with his mouth, and his tail coiled tightly around his waist.

"Jeez, lady! I must have been waiting almost twenty minutes before I thought to look for you," he said. "Why didn't you wait in the lobby like the Chief told you?"

Blake frowned, confused more than anything. He shook his head at her, then turned to the other officer and gave her an easy smile.

"Sorry about this! If I'd known she was so difficult, I would have kept her on a tighter leash!" he said. "But she's with me now, so she won't bother you any longer!"

The woman officer was just as confused as Blake, if not more. She stared suspiciously at his tail, then at Blake, before moving to stand more directly in front of the door.

"I'm sorry, who are you again? And what the hell are you talking about?" she asked.

"Oh, you must not have recognized me. No hard feelings – I'm still new here, kinda." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, then produced a badge from the pocket of his vest and held it out before him. "I'm Sun Wukong, Suntide Police's newest Criminal Detective!"

He paused for a moment, then covered his mouth with a hand and mumbled something – Blake thought she heard _rookie detective_ , but she could have been wrong. Regardless, Sun acted like he'd done nothing unusual, dropping his hands to his hips and smiling triumphantly at her and the officer.

"…Alright. I… think I remember hearing about you. I suppose," the officer said, frowning. "But that doesn't explain what you're doing here, and with _her_." She gestured at Blake. "She's a person of interest, you know, and she fled the crime scene."

"What? I didn't _flee_ the crime scene," Blake said. "Well, I did, but-"

"Nu-uh! Let the Detective speak!" Sun interjected. "She's already spoken with the chief. And me! She spoke to both of us. Separately, and together-ly." He nodded. "The chief is letting Miss Belladonna help out with the investigation, as my temporary partner. Isn't that right, partner?"

He turned and winked at Blake. When she didn't respond, he winked again. Blake was certain the officer had seen it both times.

"Yes, we are… working together," Blake held back a sigh. "…partner."

"Partners!" Sun exclaimed joyfully, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, and she dug her nails into the palms of her hands – it was all she could do to keep a straight face. "So, can we go inside?"

"Well, I want to believe you, but…" The officer's eyes returned to Sun's tail for a split second, before turning away guiltily. "I have to check with the chief first. It's protocol."

"The thing is, the chief's really busy right now. You can guess why. And we really can't afford to wait for him…" Sun let go of Blake and stepped closer to the officer. "You're Bridgette, right?"

The officer looked at him curiously. "You know my name? How?"

"Well, I heard it around the precinct, and I couldn't really forget it, now could I? Not when it belongs to such a beautiful lady," Sun said. "Say, are you free Friday night?"

Mortified, Blake opened her mouth to put an end to Sun's ridiculousness, but she suddenly found herself speechless when Sun slowly reached for the top button of his vest and undid it, all the while maintaining eye contact with the officer.

Bridgette, too, was stunned into silence. Her eyes drifted momentarily to Sun's chest before shooting back up to his face, and Blake couldn't tell whether she was more amazed or outraged.

"Y-yes, I… Uhm, you, you know what?" she squeaked, cheeks burning. "You two can go inside. G-good luck!" She turned and opened the door to the morgue, then shuffled back to her corner, eyes glued to her feet.

Sun grinned at Blake. "Ladies first."

Blake shook her head and went inside. She heard him go in after her and close the door behind them, but quickly forgot his presence when the smell of the morgue hit her nose. She had been in the presence of dead bodies before, and the smell was never pleasant, but this was different – it was _sterilized_ , which only made it worse.

It didn't take her long to find the source of the smell – or the _strongest_ source of it, at least. At the center of the room was an operational table, and on top of it were two prone forms covered by white sheets. She walked to it, and the closer she got, the more irritated her eyes got. It was so bad, she had to stop for a moment to take a deep breath and turn her eyes away.

"Gah! It never gets better," Sun said, stepping past her in a hurry. "Brace yourself."

Like ripping off a bandage, he lifted the sheets off the bodies and let them fall to the floor. Blake was surprised by the sight of the bodies. Maybe she was desensitized, but they didn't look all that terrible… aside from the bullet holes and greying skin, that is.

"Oof. There they are. Dumb and Dumber." Sun poked one of the bodies and shuddered. "So, got any idea what to look for?"

Now that he said that, Blake realized she hadn't thought that far. Restlessness and a need for action had driven her to this point, but she didn't know where to go now.

"Just look them over," Blake said. "There's gotta be something for us to find."

Sun shrugged uneasily and went around to the other side of the table, then started to fidget with the body closest to him. Blake observed him for a moment, expecting him to begin throwing questions at her, but he stayed focused on his task, even if a bit uneasily.

Well, Blake couldn't complain about the help, not when it came to such an unpleasant situation. The sooner this was over, the better, so she buckled down and started inspecting the remaining cadaver.

As her eyes trailed over the damage the man had suffered, she had to wonder how someone could have so much hate inside them to willingly put themselves in such danger, just to hurt someone else. He had to have known his fate beforehand, shooting up innocents in plain view of hundreds of people. Yet he had gone through with it anyway.

She would have pitied him if she didn't despise him so.

"Hey, I think I found something," Sun said. "Come take a look."

Blake walked over to him and looked at his body. Sun had turned the man around, and his find couldn't be more obvious – there was a black marking on the back of the left shoulder, roughly the size of an open hand.

"Is that a tattoo?" Blake muttered, ignoring the smell for a moment to take a closer look. It was a simple design – one thick vertical stripe, then three thinner, horizontal ones crossing over it, all encompassed by a perfect circle.

Had she seen this somewhere before? She could swear she had, but the memory was evading her. Maybe she just _wanted_ to have seen it before.

"Well, that's ominous. Any chance that's the mistralian symbol for _love_ or _peace_ or _rad bikes_?" Sun said. "What about your guy?"

Blake went back to her side of the table and turned the other body around. Sure enough, he had the same tattoo – except his was missing one of the horizontal stripes.

"…Maybe they're in a club?" Sun said. "Or, you know, a cult. Whatever they call them these days. I'm not really into that scene."

"Have you seen this before?" Blake asked.

"Not that I remember," Sun replied. "But I can check the records and see if we've got anything there. Chances are, someone else has stumbled upon this stuff before and made a report about it – our guys are usually good about that part of the job, at least."

Sun turned his shooter's body back around, then went over to Blake and turned hers too.

"You should come with me. Bad part about diligent reports is that we've got way too many of them. I don't know about you, but I'm not a fast reader, so…" Sun said. "Or I could just check back in with you later! It's up to you, partner."

Blake leered at him. "We're not partners."

Sun's hands went to his hips, a new frown marking his face. He gave a glance towards the door, and his tail uncurled from around his waist to point at the bodies, before he looked at her again.

"Look, I appreciate your help. But I didn't ask for it," Blake said. "This is something I need to do alone."

"Alone? Why? You would have never gotten inside here if it hadn't been for me," Sun said. "Unless _you_ were planning to smooth-talk that lady. Even then, I don't think she swings that way."

"I didn't – You-" Blake pursed her lips. Sun was annoying her so much, it was becoming difficult to speak. "You didn't _smooth-talk_ her. She was just so confused and flustered that she gave up." Her voice dropped. "Not that I blame her. I'm almost throwing in the towel myself."

"Is that what happened? 'Cause from where I stood, she looked pretty smooth-talked! I mean, it works every time." He grinned at her, then slowly, _slowly_ reached for the top button of his vest and undid it. " _Every time_. Partner."

Blake could do nothing but stare at him. Was he joking? Did he _actually_ think that would work on her – on anyone? Better yet – why she was humoring him?

"You know what? Do what you want," Blake said, marching towards the door. "Meanwhile, I'll be busy being… away from you."

"Good luck!" Sun exclaimed after her. "Oh, don't forget your phone!"

Blake turned around and reflexively caught her Scroll mid-descent. She glanced at the screen for a split-second, seeing a new contact had just been added – _Partner._ She looked at Sun, bewildered, and he smiled and waved with his tail.

Grumbling something unintelligible, Blake turned and marched out of the morgue, slamming the door shut behind her. She immediately met eyes with the woman cop outside, Bridgette, and so they stayed for a while, staring at each other, all differences and past conflicts forgotten in that moment.

Then, they shook their heads, and Blake walked away, wondering how in the hell she had gotten into such a ridiculous situation.

* * *

It was the standard protocol for any half-decent hospital to not give the rooms of their patients to anyone outside of immediate family, so Blake didn't even bother to ask the staff. That was likely better in the longer run anyway – she didn't even know the girl's name, and asking questions like that would have drawn too much attention.

She wouldn't have much trouble finding out on her own, though. The hospital, especially the entrance lobby, was positively crowded with people, be them the usual clientele, loved ones of the victims of the shooting, or the reporters covering the aftermath.

Blake even caught sight of Councilman Cobalt there, giving interview once again, perfect smile still on his lips. They met eyes, and his expression darkened, but for such a brief moment that no one quite realized it but her, and he returned to his _heartfelt_ speech. A perverse joy came to her as she imagined herself strutting in right then and there to expose his act, and the dismay and anger that would show on his face.

She almost did it. _Almost_.

After a few minutes of listening, Blake learned two important pieces of information, just enough for what she needed. Firstly, the girl's name was Pearl. The last name was up to debate, if she even had one. Secondly, she was somewhere on the third floor. Blake headed there immediately.

It was there, as she quietly searched for the right room, that she heard a familiar voice, and it brought her to a skidding halt just before she would have turned a corner. Lowering her stance, she inched closer to the wall and listened carefully.

"-the issue, Corsac," Sienna said. "I'm not having this conversation. Will you stop?"

"But my leader-" Corsac cleared his throat. "My apologies. _Sienna_ , I don't understand why you're so opposed to this. It's not a simple matter, I'll admit, but it has a simple solution. We'd only have to-"

"-To murder someone. Is that what you were about to say? No, I don't think you'd be so blunt," Sienna interrupted harshly. "Do you realize the consequences your little witch hunt would have? The goal to which we're striving – myself and your brother – all undone because of your bloodlust. Have you learned nothing from our past mistakes?"

"If I may, Sienna," Fennec joined the conversation. "My brother can be sometimes blinded by his fury, yes, but I don't agree that what he suggests would be so… damaging. The White Fang has hundreds of members in the vicinity of Suntide. Our numbers may even reach a thousand. So many, they'd have the city searched whole in a week. And the… disposing, of the coward wouldn't have to be a show. It would be done quietly… _humanely_ , if you'll pardon my choice of words."

Sienna paused, and Blake leaned forward, her own breathing loud to her ears. This was it. If she could only get her Scroll out-

"I don't care how or where or when, this is not happening. I am _not_ having this conversation. You two will forget this _abhorrent_ idea, and you, Corsac, will make it clear to the White Fang that they are to do _nothing_ regarding this situation," Sienna said, and even from a distance, Blake could tell the anger in her voice was true. "Am I clear? Or do my words demand no respect from you anymore?"

"…My sincerest apologies," Corsac muttered.

Fennec said nothing. Seconds later, Blake heard him and his brother leave, their steps going away from her position. She waited a moment before rising fully and walking around the corner and into the same hallway as Sienna, though the older woman was too immersed in her thoughts to notice her.

"So," Blake said. "You're not with the White Fang anymore, huh?"

Sienna jumped and spun to face her. Her hand hovered near her waist for a moment, close to a weapon Blake had yet to see, before going limp again. "Blake." She sighed. "Are you everywhere?"

"You've been the one to get the drop on me thus far," Blake noted.

"True…" Sienna looked back in the direction the Albain twins had taken. "And I suppose you heard everything?"

"I heard enough."

Sienna rubbed a hand on her forehead, a tired smile shaping her lips. "Would it suffice to say that you haven't got the full picture?" She chuckled. "No. Of course it wouldn't."

She walked to a bench and sat down, and Blake had the strangest feeling as they met eyes, heights terribly uneven. Maybe she ought to find some power in her position, but… it only felt off, for some reason.

"I wish I could shed that baggage, leave it all behind, but that's easier said than done when I was the High Leader of the White Fang for eight years. Especially after what I did with the role." Her gaze fell, and she seemed to grow twice as old in the passing of a second. "And how I got it."

"Corsac and Fennec, they…" Blake breathed in. Even after all these years, it was hard to say it aloud. "They know you had Joshua killed?"

Sienna flinched. "There it is. We've been dodging that topic, haven't we? It's… almost a relief that you've finally said it." She paused. "Yes, they know. I told them. And they're the only ones."

_What a merry little club we make_ , Blake thought bitterly. "Is that why you keep them around? So they won't use it against you?"

"No. I don't regret telling them. I had to tell _someone_ , and they've proved their loyalty over and over," Sienna said. "Although, I don't think they understand. Not fully. Sometimes I worry they even… _approve_ , of what I did. And that's why I keep them around." She nodded. "They're good people. Good leaders. But too easily they stray from the right path. So, I keep close, and I guide them."

"Because it takes one to know one?" Blake asked, skeptical.

Sienna smiled. "You've got me read like a book. I'll need to be more careful in the future."

"Well, Sienna, you can't have it both ways," Blake said. "Either you help the Albains and the White Fang, or you do whatever you're trying to do with your campaign."

"You mean _win_?" Sienna suggested cheerily.

"You can't tell people one thing and do the exact opposite, then expect then to trust you anyway. All you're doing with this is proving everyone right about what they think of you," Blake said. "You can't keep this up forever. And if you do, you're no better than the humans you're trying to replace."

Blake wasn't sure why she was giving advice to Sienna. It was hardly in her interests. Though she had to admit it was cathartic, in a sense. She'd held nothing but fear and contempt towards Sienna throughout the day, but in this moment, there was none of that, and she had full confidence in what she was saying.

It didn't hurt that Sienna seemed to be paying attention. Whether she agreed with any of it at all was another matter altogether, but it was a good sign.

"You're a fountain of wisdom, as always," Sienna said, her attempt at levity betrayed by her guarded expression. "I take it you didn't come here just to lecture me, though."

"You're right about that," Blake said. "I'm looking for the girl who was shot. Pearl, right?"

"Yes. That's her name," Sienna replied gravely. "She got out of surgery a couple hours ago. Her wounds weren't all that bad, thankfully. I can take you to her room, even pull some strings to get you inside to talk to her."

Blake looked at Sienna skeptically. Well, she didn't have any buttons on her shirt, so whatever help she was offering couldn't be that bad.

"Wait, if you know where she is, does that mean you've talked to her?" Blake asked.

"Yes, but…" Sienna winced. "Let's just say, that conversation went about as well as with the Albains just now…"

* * *

Blake let the door click shut behind her and lingered there, her eyes slowly acclimating to the pitch-dark. _Awkward_ didn't do justice to how she felt right then. No, she felt like an intruder, barging in on someone she didn't even know when they were at their most vulnerable.

Her mind changed, Blake began to turn around to open the door again and slip back into the hallway, any shame in that act swiftly disregarded. She would find a better way to get the information. But just as her fingers closed around the doorknob, there was a faint rustling behind her, shortly accompanied by a puzzled murmur.

Pearl sat up in the hospital bed, dragging the sheets up to her chin, her eyes wavering in fear. Her hair was black with green highlights, which made her sickly pale skin stand out even more. Thin whiskers rose from the sides of her nose.

Blake had gathered the girl was young, but she seemed so small, almost a child. Maybe it was only her current frailty that gave that impression. Even so, Blake felt a pang of pity for her.

"Hey," Blake said, as softly as she could. "I'm sorry to disturb you. I…"

Blake stopped herself, suddenly lost for words. _I need to talk to you about the people who killed your boyfriend_. What the hell was she doing?

"…Who are you?" Pearl whispered. "Are you with the police?"

"I'm… Blake. And no, I'm on my own. No police involved," Blake said, gently raising her hands. "Can I sit? Just to talk?"

Pearl peered at her, eyes morphing into a glare for a few seconds, before her shoulders slumped and she gave a noncommittal nod to a chair in the corner of the room. Blake hesitated, wary of having a conversation with Pearl even if she was open to it. The last thing she wanted was to cause her even more hurt.

But maybe a conversation was just what she needed. Someone to simply be with her – even if she didn't want it. With that in mind, Blake took the chair and brought it to the side of the bed, then sat down on it.

"Are you okay?" she asked, and immediately regretted it. What a stupid question. "Sorry. How are you recovering?"

Pearl gazed at her sideways, rubbing an arm guardedly. "I'm doing okay, all things considered… The surgery went well. Not that I would know…" She paused, and Blake saw her shiver from head to toe. "The doctors said my… uhm, i-injuries weren't all that bad, actually… It was mostly just…"

She trailed off, and though her eyes were on Blake, they seemed far, far away. Blake recognized the signs immediately and shuffled in her chair, snapping Pearl back, then leaned forward a little.

"You know, I have a friend who got shot once. I was there with her, too," Blake said. "It was scary. But we got her to a hospital and they fixed her right up. Just a scratch"

"Did she…" Pearl looked at her hopefully. "Did she hurt? After?"

"No. Never complained. She was the same old Ilia as always," Blake said. "The only way you'd know it happened was if you saw her scar. She didn't like it, obviously, but it was kinda badass."

"Really? Well, I'm… I'm gonna have a lot more scars than just one… Don't know if that'll be the same," Pearl said. "How's she now?"

Blake's hands closed her thighs, a fresh wave of guilt and sadness washing over her, though she tried to keep it hidden. "I don't know. We lost contact a few years back."

"Oh." Pearl looked down at her lap, and the room fell into silence.

Blake swore at herself mentally. Not five minutes into the conversation, and she'd already managed to upset Pearl with her own emotional baggage. That seemed to be a specialty of hers.

Her eyes scoured the room as she searched for something to bring up, anything that might get Pearl talking again. But there was nothing. No flowers, no balloons, not even personal belongings.

"Pearl, do you have anyone you'd like to be here with you?" Blake asked. "If you don't know how to contact them, just tell me anything you think might be useful and I'll find them for you."

"Thanks, but… The hospital's already asked," Pearl said. "I don't have anyone, no."

"No one? Not even your parents?"

Pearl's eyes narrowed. "They're not in the picture. No friends either. Nobody cared at all about me until I got _shot_ , no one but-"

Whatever she had been meaning to say was cut short by a storm of sobs and tears. Blake drew back as Pearl covered her face with her hands, so startled she almost rose from her chair and bolted out of the room. Once the shock from the sudden outburst faded, however, she managed to recollect herself and leaned towards Pearl, taking a hand in one of her own, while the other went to the girl's arm.

Pearl flinched and looked Blake up and down, such fear in her eyes, it was as if there was a monster sitting in Blake's place. But her crying lessened - slowly, gradually, but it lessened.

"It's okay. Let it all out," Blake said.

"…s-so stupid. I didn't even know him that long. Two months." Pearl sobbed. "Damien…"

"He was your boyfriend. And, you don't have to know someone for years to care about them," Blake said. She waited for a response, but Pearl seemed uninterested in speaking. _Not good_. "Can I ask how you two met?"

Pearl pushed Blake's hands away, lay down in her bed and turned away. Blake held back a sigh. She couldn't be upset – this little talk was already much more than what could be expected of a victim like Pearl.

"…I wasn't just whining," Pearl said, so quiet Blake had to strain her ears to hear. "Nobody cared about me. Literally. Not even the other faunus cared. I was going to die in the streets. I knew it. Maybe I should have."

"And then Damien showed up. He helped me, even though I wanted nothing to do with him. He wasn't doing all that well either, but he kept helping anyway. His friends gave him trouble too because of it…"

"And then… I don't know. I guess he got to me, eventually. He was stubborn like that. And we had a great time together… even if it didn't last…"

There was a faint whimper, then one final whisper. "I never felt safer than when I was with him."

Blake stared at the darkness, a creeping sense of familiarity stealing the air from her lungs. It was a hell of a chance that had connected her to a girl like Pearl, with a story so like hers. Or, more likely – and she knew it to be true, much as she hated it – the world was a cruel place, and the same cycles of violence and loss kept repeating themselves, only with different faces, different names.

But she was getting lost in her own story, once again. Blake, the self-absorbed. She might have lost Adam, but it hadn't happened out of nowhere. There had been contention for years, even if she hadn't realized it until it was too late. And when it came time, it had been her choice to forsake him.

But Pearl… She didn't get to make any choice at all.

"Pearl," Blake said, drawing her chair a little closer to the bed. "Those friends of Damien you mentioned. Did they have anything to do with…?" She let the phrase hang there. It was too soon to bring up the event itself.

"…Yeah. I think so. _I'm sure_." Pearl turned around to face her and pushed herself up, sheets sliding down her body a bit. There was a new fire in her eyes, and it had burned away the sadness and fear, at least for the moment. "So, you're really not with them."

"What?" Blake frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, they're not a kind bunch of humans. Obviously," Pearl said, lips straightening. "When I saw you come in with that knife – yeah, I saw it – I thought they had sent someone to finish the job." She looked away momentarily, some shame coloring her cheeks, before she locked eyes with Blake again. "I'm glad I was wrong."

Blake tapped her thigh, tracing the shape of her blade with a finger. Pearl must have lived a long time in the streets, and faced many hardships, to so easily identify when someone was carrying a hidden weapon.

"Well," Blake said uneasily. " _Can_ you tell me about them?"

"The police have already asked. That woman, Sienna, too. I didn't tell them a thing," Pearl said. "Why should I tell _you_?"

"I want to help you, Pearl," Blake said. "I'm… I'm a Huntress. That's what I do."

Pearl appeared unphased. "Yeah? And if I tell you about those guys, and you track them down… What are you going to do to them?"

"…I'll bring them to justice."

Pearl sneered and turned away. "They'll be out free in a week. The only way to punish them for what they did to Damien is to put them in the ground. It's what they deserve."

"Pearl. You might _think_ you want them dead, but you don't," Blake said. "You'll feel good for a while, but you'll regret it for the rest of your life. Trust me. You don't want to make the same mistakes-"

"Yeah? And how do _you_ know what _I_ want?" Pearl asked furiously. "Forget it. You're as bad as all the others. Oh, you sure _care_ , don't you? But you won't do anything!" She spat. "Typical. If they were faunus, you'd be chomping at the bit to kill them."

"You think I don't want them to pay?"

The look Pearl gave chilled Blake's bones. Frozen in her chair, Blake was suddenly aware of the velvety weight around her ears, and the way they scratched and itched with every slight flow of air that brushed past them.

_When was the last time you let someone know?_

_Never. Never of your own accord._

Arms trembling, Blake lifted her hands to the bow atop her head and, with one easy pull, undid its knot. She let the loose fabric fall to the palm of her hand and, her heart beating like a freight-train, presented it to Pearl.

Pearl stared at it for a moment, her face blank, before her eyes wandered to Blake's exposed ears. "…Is that supposed to make me trust you?"

Blake had never heard such contempt in someone's voice before. That it was Pearl's – small, vulnerable Pearl – only made it worse.

"I don't know," Blake said. "I just want you to know… I understand. More than you realize, I understand."

"Well, the only thing I know is that you're a coward," Pearl said. "I'm not telling you anything, so you can go now. Shoo! Sorry I wasted your time."

She turned away and lay down, dragging the sheets up to her ears. For a while, Blake just sat beside the bed, looking blankly at Pearl's tense form, not knowing what to feel or do.

Then, with a heavy sigh, she wrapped her bow around her ears again, and eased into her chair.

"I'm not going anywhere."

Pearl stirred, the only sign that she'd heard her.


	4. Eyes That Could Tell Stories

" _Why do I stay here? Blake, what are you asking?"_

_Ilia paused in her cooking to look at Blake, her eyes widening inquisitively. Blake squirmed a bit on her chair, fingers twiddling over the dinner table._

" _I mean, you don't have to be here in the White Fang, right? You're not like most of us who can't pass off as humans without disguises. Unless you're changing colors, you're just like them."_

_Blake bit the inside of her cheek. That had come across wrong. Luckily, Ilia didn't seem to take offense, as she raised her spatula and spun it between her fingers, deep in thought._

" _I guess you're right. My parents used to tell me to hide who I really was when I went to school, and it actually worked, for a while at least. Nobody knew I was a faunus," she said. "But as I got older, I became a little bit of a… well, a brat."_

" _You, a brat?" Blake snickered. "That's hard to believe."_

 _Ilia turned pink. "I was five, okay? Anyway, my emotions started to get the better of me, and you know what that means." She shook her head. "I guess that's how I became a target for_ them _."_

" _Right. Sorry, I didn't mean to-"_

" _It's okay. To be honest, I was kinda relieved I didn't have to hide anymore. I didn't even understand it at the time, but it felt wrong, you know?" Ilia said. "That's why I'm still here, I suppose. I could leave and live a good life passing off as a human, but what about all the faunus out there who would still be suffering? I couldn't live with myself like that."_

_Blake nodded. That did sound pretty selfish._

_Ilia turned back to the stove and pressed her spatula down on the frying pan, causing steam to rise from the fish she was cooking. "Besides, Blake, you know the_ real _reason I stay."_

" _Yeah?" Blake tapped her fingers on the table, a grin coming to her lips. "What's that?"_

_Ilia hunched her shoulders, and even more steam rose from the frying pan, touching the ceiling and temporarily obscuring her cheeks. The scent of fish filled Blake's nostrils._

" _I'm not going anywhere without you, Blake."_

* * *

A faint voice jostled Blake from her sleep, and she felt her chest tighten. Danger. She was in danger. But how? She couldn't be, not with the morning warmth and the gentle city breeze that touched her face.

Steeling herself, Blake opened her eyes. Her hand made it halfway to her blade before she remembered where she was – and who was with her. Though the question of why Sienna was in the room with her and Pearl sent her mind racing.

"Ah. Blake, you're awake." Leaning back against the open windowsill, the blue of the sky and the gray of Suntide's skyscrapers marking the horizon behind her, Sienna raised a cup of coffee in greeting and gave a little smile. "I was beginning to think you were going to sleep 'til dinner. You must have been exhausted after yesterday, huh?"

Blake scowled, a heated retort rising to the tip of her tongue, but she held it back as Sienna looked at her significantly, her head tilted ever-so-subtly towards Pearl. _Not in front of her_.

"I'm sorry." In the bed, Pearl turned to look at Blake, eyes fleeing hers. "I didn't realize… Should I have woken you up earlier?"

"…No. It's fine," Blake said. "I needed the sleep anyway."

"Can't blame you." Sienna took a sip of her coffee. "Slept like a rock myself."

Pearl looked from Blake to Sienna, her innocent expression betrayed by the sharpness of her gaze. "So… you two know each other?"

"Yeah, we know each other," Blake replied dryly, looking at Sienna. "What brings you here anyway, Sienna?"

_Why the hell are you here?_

"That's a bit of a sore subject," Sienna said. "I came here to apologize to Pearl. You see, when I came to talk to her yesterday, after everything that happened – the launch of my campaign, the incident… I'm afraid I was a bit too forceful with her. It was… shameful." She smiled at Pearl. "Thankfully, she's found it in her heart to forgive me. Right?"

Pearl nodded dully. "We were all feeling a little out of sorts yesterday." Blake noticed she didn't so much as look her way when she said that, which could hardly be a coincidence. "Sienna promised to help me with anything, for as long as I can stand her. Her words, not mine."

"I would have done it even if I hadn't hurt her, of course," Sienna remarked, and took another sip of her coffee. "This won't be a problem, will it, Blake?"

It was definitely a problem, but Blake held herself back. Sienna was right to be acting so carefully around Pearl. The last thing the girl needed was two near-strangers fighting over her while she tried to recover.

No, Blake would have preferred Sienna to be nowhere near Pearl, but there was nothing she could do now that Sienna had made herself familiar. And Pearl did seem comfortable around her. Blake would just have to keep a close eye on Sienna – more than she already was, that is.

"Well, I wish I could stay longer, but I've got an election to win," Sienna said, tossing her empty cup in a trash can. "I'll visit again later, okay? Until then, be well, you two."

She took out her cellphone and headed out the door. Blake mouthed an apology to Pearl, then went after Sienna, stopping her in the hallway.

"Blake? Something you need to talk about?" Sienna said, glancing at Pearl's room. "I swear to you, I only have the best of intentions."

"I highly doubt – Nevermind. This isn't about that," Blake said. "Do you have a pen and paper?"

Sienna looked at her skeptically, but opened her purse to retrieve a notepad and pen, and handed them over. Blake quickly sketched the mark she'd seen on the bodies in the morgue, then flipped the notepad to show it to Sienna.

"That… is not your phone number," Sienna said, smirking playfully. "Thank goodness. I thought things were about to get _real awkward_ between us."

"Sienna, please. Have you ever seen this before?" Blake asked. "It's somehow related to the men who killed Pearl's boyfriend."

Sienna's face grew serious, and she took the notepad in her own hands to inspect the drawing more closely. She said nothing for a while, until her eyes widened in recognition, and she pressed her lips together crossly.

"This… This is nothing good," she said quietly, leaning closer to Blake. "I've seen it with my own eyes a couple times only. I wish I had never. It's a… a sort of symbol, obviously, and it belongs to a certain group of humans." Sienna frowned. "Though even calling them humans sounds wrong, and that should tell you something, coming from me."

"So you know these people," Blake said. "What's their name?"

"I don't know, and I don't care. Names are power, Blake. Some people are best left without one," Sienna said.

"Okay, but that doesn't help me, Sienna," Blake said, frustrated. "How do I find these people?"

"I've no idea." She looked at the drawing again and shook her head, before ripping the page off the notepad and crumpling it in her hand. "Blake, I think it would be best if you dropped this."

Blake stared at Sienna, stunned. "You can't be serious. You practically begged me to help you yesterday, and now you're telling me to _stop_?"

"If I had known this is who we're dealing with, I never would have asked for your help in the first place," Sienna said. "You might think you're prepared for anything, but you're not. You don't know these people, Blake. Not like I do."

The color on her face faded, as if stolen away by some unseen terror. It was an odd look for Sienna, but Blake was far too angry to give that any mind.

"You send me on this mission, blind, you offer all your help and swear up and down that you won't rest until we catch this monster, but the momentI get a real lead…" Blake looked up at Sienna, closing her fists. "You care so much about me, don't you? Or maybe you're just afraid of what I'm gonna find when I get to the truth."

There had been a small voice inside Blake's head ever since she'd regained her bearings after the shooting, and it had only gotten more insistent since then. It kept reminding her of what Sienna was capable of, of what terrible lengths she had gone to in the past to get what she wanted. The voice sounded too close to a certain councilman, however, and Blake wasn't about to give in to paranoia so easily, so she had ignored it.

But she couldn't anymore. It was all too convenient. Meeting Sienna again after so long, the campaign, her promises, a timely tragedy…

"I sense a very elaborate theory, Blake," Sienna said wearily. "If I confirmed it, would it get you to not go looking for those murderers?"

"It wouldn't," Blake said. "I don't know what your game is, but I'm done playing. If you want to stop me, go ahead and try. But I actually care about justice, so I'm getting these guys with or without your help – and once I do, you're next."

"There's a difference between conviction and stubbornness, Blake." Sienna sighed. "I just don't want you to get hurt because of me."

"Well, it's a little too late for that, don't you think?"

Sienna stared at her in frustration before seemingly deciding that there was nothing she could say to change Blake's mind. "Just don't do anything reckless." She rolled her eyes. "Oh, who am I kidding."

She walked to an elevator and called it to their floor, casting a sideways glance at Blake as she took out her phone again and brought it to her ear. Blake shook her head and walked back to Pearl's room, closing the door behind her.

Her face must have tipped Pearl off about how she was feeling, as her lips parted in a small, knowing smile. "You don't like Sienna very much, do you?"

"We've got history, and not the good kind," Blake said. "Do _you_ like her?"

"Kinda," Pearl said, and rolled her eyes as Blake shifted uneasily near the door. "I'm not clueless, Blake. I know who Sienna Khan is. She's not the kind of person I would usually choose to hang around. Have mixed feelings about the White Fang too, if you're wondering about that." She shrugged. "But Sienna seems cool. I mean, she was kinda pushy yesterday, but I was so… numb, that I didn't even remember it all that well. She didn't need to come here to apologize."

"She's running for office, Pearl," Blake noted. "You think she did that just out of the goodness of her heart? I can guarantee you half the press already knows that she's come to visit you personally not once, but twice."

"Oh, I know." Pearl crossed her arms. "But you're not entirely altruistic yourself, are you, Blake?"

Blake pursed her lips. She didn't know if Pearl was always this blunt or if she didn't care because of what she'd just been through, but Pearl seemed to know exactly what to say to get her off-balance. Blake supposed that was better than having her disappear into herself like a lot of people did after traumatic experiences.

"You wanna hear something else?" Pearl grinned. "You two are really similar."

Blake pulled up a chair and sat beside Pearl, holding back a sigh. "How so?"

"I don't know, I've just met you. It's mostly just a vibe I get," Pearl said nonchalantly. "You both come across super-serious most of the time, but I think you're just big softies on the inside."

"Sienna is _not_ a softie," Blake said. "…Though you might be right about me."

"I _am_ right. Wasn't asking for your opinion."

Blake shook her head. If this was Pearl's default mood now, she was going to be handful. Though Blake had to admit she was as entertained as she was bothered by it.

Her Scroll buzzed in her pocket, and she retrieved it immediately, expecting – or maybe hoping – to see something from Pyrrha. Instead, she was met with a short message from Sun. Because it wasn't bad enough that he'd snuck his number onto his phone, he'd somehow also acquired her own number.

Joy.

 _Got info on our bad guys! Meet me for lunch?_ The message was followed by an address and a photo of Sun posing in front of a restaurant. Notably, the camera was focused not on his face, but on his abs. _Strictly business, partner_.

Blake groaned.

"Is that your boyfriend?" Pearl asked, stretching her neck to see. "Damn, girl." She whistled.

"What – no! He's just my partner!" Blake exclaimed, then caught what she'd just said. "He's not my partner. He's…"

Pearl raised an eyebrow. "Are all old-timers this weird with relationships, or is it just you?"

"We don't have any sort of relationship. He's just helping me with the investigation," Blake said. And now she'd normalized working with Sun. Great. "Do you mind if I leave for a while to meet him? It's really important."

Pearl shuffled back in her bed, humor draining from her face. "Alright."

"Are you sure?" Blake asked. "If you don't want to be alone-"

"It's okay. Go do what you gotta do, if it'll help you get…" Pearl looked away, rubbing a hand over her eyes. "Just, uhm, promise to come back later? I… I like having you around."

"Don't worry." Blake squeezed Pearl's shoulder. "I'll be back before you know it."

* * *

As it turned out, Sun hadn't picked the most accessible of places to meet with her, being a neighborhood far away from the hospital and… well, anything of importance in the city, really.

But aside from the distance of travel, Blake's wasn't all that bothered. In fact, she was glad to be away from the more populated areas of Suntide. Her name and face were getting a lot of attention from the media – attention she didn't need, much less wanted. Just getting out of the hospital had been a hassle, with multiple reporters trying to stop her for an interview or just a quick word.

That wasn't the only difficulty – because of course it wasn't. A large crowd had gathered in front of the hospital, seemingly overnight, of people expressing their support for Pearl and protesting faunus violence. Blake wouldn't have been angry at all, if it weren't for the attention they drew, and the knowledge that a demonstration like that was a sign that Sienna's popularity was on the rise.

Nothing good came without a price, she supposed.

When Blake got off the bus, she had barely a second to acclimatize herself to the place before she was accosted by Sun.

"Partner!" he shouted cheerfully, hopping over to her side with a hand raised for a high five.

Blake looked blankly at his hand, then his face, before rolling her eyes. Sun lowered his hand, appearing dejected for a second before his radiant disposition made a reappearance.

"Alrighty! I'm glad you came, partner," he said. "I thought you were going to ignore me and leave me in the dust. Guess you must really want this sweet bombload of info I so expertly dug up with my detective skills."

"…Yes. That's _the only reason_ I'm here," Blake said. "Are you happy now? And can you stop calling me partner? I have a name."

"Sure thing, part- Blake," Sun said. "Let's grab a bite to eat first, though!"

Blake nodded. She didn't have that much choice, did she now? And now that she thought about it, she hadn't had anything to eat since she'd gone to see Pearl yesterday. Catching up to that realization, her stomach was starting to protest, and loudly at that.

She looked around the empty street and started heading to the only restaurant there, the same from Sun's photo. It was mistrali cuisine, it seemed. Good, Blake greatly enjoyed-

"Where are you going?" Sun called out. "Lunch's over here!"

Blake turned around and felt her heart drop. Sun was going in the direction _away_ from the mistrali restaurant, towards a food truck parked near the street corner. Blake had half the mind to ignore him and go to the place she'd rather eat at, but she really wanted Sun's info, so upsetting him was not on the menu.

"What the hell…?" Blake muttered under her breath as she caught up to him and stopped in front of the truck. Her whole body shuddered as she glanced at the disheveled-looking man inside and the narrow selection of… _foods_ on the counter before him.

"Blake, I'm honored to introduce you to the best hot dog place in Vacuo!" Sun said. "You've never eaten anything close to it!"

"Yah! That's the slogan, lady!" the cook bellowed, gesturing to the letters crudely painted on the side of the truck. "You've never eaten anything close to it!"

Blake didn't doubt that for a second.

"I'll just choose for you since this is your first time, okay?" Sun said to her before smiling to the cook. "Two of the usual, please!"

"Two of the usual, coming up!"

Blake put a hand on her belly and took in deep breaths as she watched the cook get to work mixing up the ingredients. That info had better be worth it.

* * *

"This is what I dug up."

Blake watched apprehensively as Sun reached under his vest and took out a file. They'd finished eating minutes before, much to Blake's relief, and were now sitting on a bench on the sidewalk. Blake was starting to think Sun hadn't chosen this spot just because of his favorite food. There was little activity on the street, so _if_ someone tried to spy on them, they would be surely notice it.

Maybe Sun wasn't that much of a bumbling idiot, after all.

"I got most of this out of the police archives. Which, by the way, I'm not allowed to take files out off, much less show it to non-police-affiliated personnel, so…" He gave her a pleading look, then shrugged. "But some of it I got elsewhere. My roommate works in the same field and he helped me find more stuff."

"So, you have to be careful, but you got more people involved…?" Blake questioned, her faith in Sun plummeting again.

"Hey, he's my best buddy!" Sun protested. "Anyway, check this out! Oh, but it's kinda graphic – just warning you."

He opened the file and retrieved some photos from it, then passed then over to Blake. She gave them a cursory look, taking his warning to heart, and it was good she did. The content of most of them was nothing out of the ordinary, just the marking they'd found on the morgue on other people, dead or alive, or displayed in objects and buildings.

The other photos, though… Blake was starting to understand why Sienna had been so shaken by the mere sight of the mark.

" _They_ did all of this?" Blake asked. Dumb question, but she felt like she needed to say something, if only to distract herself from the upset feeling in her stomach.

"Yep. _They_ being the 'Cleansers'. At least that's what they call themselves," Sun said, his seriousness a stark contrast from his usual cheery attitude. "They're some sort of extremist faunus-hating group. All humans, obviously. From what I gathered, they seem to target all kinds of faunus, though obviously they prefer to be discreet and… you know, pick off the most vulnerable ones, who nobody will miss."

Blake's blood ran cold as she recalled what Pearl had told her the previous night. _Nobody cared about me. Not even the other faunus._

"The mark, it looks like they put it on their bodies to identify each other. But I don't know if they all do it, 'cause then they wouldn't be able to stay hidden so easy," Sun said. "Also, there are variations, like on our morgue guys."

He picked out three photos, all showing tattooed marks, and showed them to Blake.

"They all have one vertical line, right? The difference is the number of sideway stripes running across it," he said. "My guess is, the more stripes you got, the higher in the chain you are."

"If that's true… The dead shooters, one of them had two stripes, the other had three," Blake said. "What if to get another stripe, they have to do… something? To prove their worth, like a test. And with their mission in life being to kill faunus…"

"You think the two-stripes guy was going to kill Pearl to get his last stripe?" Sun ran a hand back through his hair. "I think you've got a good theory, Blake. Though maybe the boyfriend was also part of the test. Or…"

Or Damien had simply been an unfortunate casualty.

Blake grit her teeth. She wasn't shocked anymore. She was _angry_.

 _Cleansers_. Of course, it had to be some righteous bullshit like that. She didn't have to do any digging to get what they were all about – humans exterminating the faunus of Vacuo to _cleanse_ the evil from their homeland.

"How long has the police known about them?" Blake asked.

"I don't know. I found stuff going back almost twenty years, but I'll bet there's even more past that, it just becomes even trickier to track down," Sun said.

"And _somehow_ , it's never gotten out to the public." Blake smiled humorlessly. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Well, obviously… Obviously someone wanted to keep the whole business hush-hush," Sun said, his voice getting smaller. "I guess the police just… went along with it…"

Blake could only feel so much sympathy for Sun. If he hadn't realized the true nature of Vacuo's police force until now, he only had himself to blame.

"I always knew most of the police is crooked and racist and all that, but… I thought the problem was with some people, not the whole thing, you know? That's why I joined, to try and change things for the better." Sun sighed. "Guess I'm just a sucker."

"You're a good cop, Sun." Blake looked down at the files. "Even if you snuck confidential information out of the precinct and showed it to a civilian. But you did it for a good cause. I promise I'll make good use of it."

"I know you will. I wouldn't have made you my partner if I didn't trust you," Sun said.

"You have _no reason_ to trust me."

"Yes, which is why I should keep an eye on you - in case you need help!" Sun put everything back in the file and stood up. "Now excuse me while I go return this before I get discharged from the force and beaten to death in a back-alley by my ex-colleagues." He gave her a wide smile and waved. "Cheers, partner!"

As he walked away, Blake chose not to protest that last line. Not because she was in any way warming up to Sun, but because _maybe_ he deserved a break.

* * *

"-that's why a discussion on our healthcare system is important, so other disadvantaged individuals don't have to rely on public support to cover their treatment, like in Miss Pearl's case," Sienna said, walking to her car alongside a posse of reporters. "That's just one matter I'll be devoting myself to once I'm in office. Unfortunately, I can't elaborate on _all_ my plans right now, so if you'll excuse me-"

"Miss Khan! One last question!" a reporter screamed. "What do you have to say about Councilman Cobalt's claims that you were involved in the mass shooting yesterday that took the lives of-"

Sienna spun around and held up a hand to interrupt the reporter. "I'll have the same answer I've given to this inane question a hundred times today," she said loudly. "I don't care what fantastic claims the good councilman makes about me. They don't matter to me in the slightest. I am more interested in _real_ conversations about _real_ problems our society faces, so if he wants to reach out to my team and negotiate a time and place for a civil debate, _please do_. The ball is on your court, Mr. Cobalt."

She flashed a smile for the cameras, then walked around her car and got in, all but falling onto the driver's seat.

On the passenger's seat, Fennec looked out the window at the raving reporters and clucked his tongue. "Vultures, the bunch of them."

"Indeed." Sienna turned the car on and chuckled. "Where would we be without them?"

* * *

Blake returned to the hospital when dusk was nearing, having taken a quick detour to her hideout to hide away her gun – hardly something she wanted to be carrying around, especially around sick people – and make sure there was no Grimm-related business she needed to attend to. Fortunately, Beacon seemed to have everything under control in Vacuo for now, so barring any surprises like yesterday's, she shouldn't have anything to worry about.

The protesting crowd had only grown during Blake's absence, but she passed through without great trouble, though she couldn't avoid the cameras that flashed on her as she entered the hospital. She could only wonder what rumors would be conjured up about her presence there.

When she opened the door to Pearl's room, she was greeted by pitch-black and silence. The shutters on the windows had been lowered and closed to block all light, but oddly enough, Blake could feel a breeze coming inside the room through them. She looked worriedly at the mound of blankets on Pearl's bed, rising and falling almost imperceptibly, and closed the door behind her, then quietly walked to the window.

Blake parted the shutters with a hand and discovered, as she'd thought, that the windows had been left open. She looked down, towards the street and the crowd of people there, then up at rooms above. They all had their windows shut, except for the third one up.

She stared for a while, her skin crawling. Maybe she was being paranoid, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

There was a rustling of movement behind her, followed by a gasp. Blake turned around slowly, showing her hands, and Pearl breathed a sigh of relief and allowed herself to fall back and rest against her pillow.

"It's just you, Blake," she said. "You scared me for a second."

"Sorry. I should have said something." Blake tapped the windowsill. "It's going to be windy tonight. Want me to close this?"

Pearl looked at the window and blinked, then turned her eyes away sharply. "Oh. The nurse must have left it open. Yeah, please close it."

Blake closed the window and opened the shutters a little bit, then went and turned on the light, all the while keeping a watchful eye on Pearl. There was no mistaking it, she was tense. That shouldn't be anything strange considering her situation, but Blake knew there was something more to it.

"There's a lot of people down there," Blake said, taking a seat beside the bed and giving Pearl a comforting smile. If she gave her time, Pearl would tell her what was wrong eventually. No reason to freak her out with an interrogation. "Did you see them?"

"Yeah, I did, when I went to the bathroom," Pearl said. "I'm glad you weren't there to see. I almost tripped on my own foot. It was embarrassing."

"You did get shot just yesterday. If I were in your place and I could walk on my own already, I would be jumping with joy," Blake said. "Figuratively."

Pearl grunted a response and looked at the window, her fingers jumping jitterily on her lap.

"Does it feel weird, knowing all those people are standing out there just for you?" Blake asked.

"No… Yes. But not because…" Pearl dug her fingers into her palms and pressed her hands down on the mattress, her shoulders rising and becoming stiff. "I just… I don't know if I deserve all that. It's not like I'm… I'm…"

Pearl shuddered, her eyes shimmering with tears. Blake grabbed her hand and squeezed.

"You've done nothing wrong, Pearl," she said. "You're here because some evil people decided to hurt you. They were wrong. And those people out there, they know that. That's why they're supporting you."

"But I'm just… I'm not anyone, okay? I'm just a stupid rat girl who got what she deserved 'cause she didn't know her place," Pearl said. "I'm worthless. I should have just died there! Now I'm just a burden to those people, a-and you, and Sienna…"

"Pearl! Don't _ever_ speak like that!" Blake said. "You start thinking like that, and _they_ win. You're not worthless. You're not a burden. You _matter_. Do you get that?"

Pearl sobbed and rolled on her side, grabbing Blake by the wrist and dragging her hand up to press it against her forehead.

"Damien used to say the same stuff," she whispered. "He was so stupid."

Blake frowned. " _Pearl_."

"He was. His heart was way too pure, and that would have been enough on its enough, except he surrounded himself with assholes – and me," Pearl said. "I told him he was just asking for trouble, but he didn't listen to me. _Nooo_ , Pearl's just being cynical like always. So I guess I was even stupider than him for staying anyway." She pursed her lips. "He would hate me if he was here right now."

Pearl sat up and looked at Blake, her arms trembling.

"Blake… I think I screwed up."

Blake leaned forward, trying to appear calm despite her speeding heart. "It's okay. Don't panic. Just tell me what happened."

"I… I know the people who killed Damien. Or o-one of them, at least. He was a friend of his. One of the bad ones, with even worse friends. Not even Damien liked him very much," Pearl said, her voice almost a whisper. "I know where he usually hangs out… And I told someone."

"Who?"

"A woman. She said her name was Trifa."

Blake couldn't stop herself from cursing, and the effect on Pearl was clear, the girl flinching and dragging herself away from her like she was afraid of getting hit.

"I-I should have told you, Blake, b-but… I don't know! I didn't want him to just…" Pearl shook her head furiously. "She said she was going to do the right thing – y-you know, k-kill him. But I don't want that anymore! Damien wouldn't want that! So maybe you can stop her, if it's not too late…?"

Blake stood up and started pacing around the room. "When was she here?"

"I-I don't know, three hours-"

"Tell me everything you told her."

Pearl nodded and started speaking fast, listing off names and places, while Blake took out her phone and made a call. When it got picked up, she raised a hand and Pearl stopped talking.

" _Hey, partner! Knew you wouldn't-_ "

"Shut up, Sun," Blake said. "I've got the name of the runaway Cleanser. Marcus Steel. I've got a bunch of places but I can't be sure where exactly he's hiding."

" _Woah. Okay. You, uh, you work fast. We can check them out if that's what you're thinking,_ " Sun said. " _Why the hurry, though?_ "

"Because he's about to get murdered by the White Fang."

" _Oh._ "

"Are you near the hospital?"

" _Shawcross Central? Yeah. I can drive by to pick you up. See you soon, partner!_ "

Blake put her Scroll away and turned to Pearl. "Don't worry. I'm gonna fix this, okay? Just stay put until I'm back."

Pearl just nodded, too shaken to say anything. Blake took a deep breath and opened the door, and didn't get out two steps before she almost slammed into Sienna.

"Woah, Blake. Watch out," Sienna said, stepping back. She looked at Blake's face and frowned. "What's going on?"

"Did you send Trifa to kill him?" Blake hissed.

"What the hell are you talking about? Who's _him_? And I've already told you a million times, I'm not in charge-" Sienna stopped. "Wait, are you saying you found the missing guy? Blake, you aren't going to-"

"I don't have time for this." Blake started walking away, shooting Sienna an angry look over her shoulder. "You had better not be with Pearl when I'm back."

Sienna blinked at her a couple times, then smiled sweetly at Blake and slipped inside Pearl's room, a defiant look in her eyes. The door closed, and Blake stopped in front of the elevator, mashing the call button impatiently.

_Come on come on come on…_

* * *

"So apparently this Marcus guy's been through the system a couple times already," Sun said, not even blinking as he jerked on the steering wheel and brought the police car skidding around a corner, knocking the wind out of Blake's lungs. "You know, bad guys goes in, bad guys comes out, all in a few days' worth. Well, for him, his buddies waited almost a week to get him out, must not be very popular-"

Sun stopped what he was saying to honk at a car coming at them in the opposite direction. The street they'd just entered was so narrow, the other guy was forced to ride up onto the sidewalk to let him pass, which Blake was pretty sure was a crime, though Sun justifiably wasn't so worried about ticketing that right now.

"Honestly," he grunted, poking the car panel restlessly. "Nobody respects a freakin' siren anymore. Where's the volume on this thing?"

"That's not a thing, Sun. Eyes on the road, please," Blake said, catching her breath. "What were you saying about Marcus? What was he arrested for before?"

"A buncha stuff. Mostly small crimes – you know, petty theft, public intoxication, _loitering_ , apparently. All that, and some cases of aggravated assault which, in the end, _he couldn't be linked to_." Sun glared at the road. "Impressive record for a guy his age."

"Wait, how old is he again?" Blake asked.

"Sixteen. Bright kid, I know."

Sixteen, and already a career criminal and member of a faunus-killing gang. Blake knew she shouldn't be surprised – it wasn't like people decided to become racist monsters halfway through their life – but still, to be so young and so full of hate, it was difficult to comprehend.

But it wasn't like she hadn't known similar people in the past. And not just a few, either. The White Fang was ripe with the same type as Marcus, just on the other end of the racist spectrum.

Still, he didn't deserve to be killed.

"Hold on to something."

Sun took another sharp turn, and the car started to rock up and down as it drove onto an unpaved road. The whole street was lined up by houses which couldn't be hospitable, but had people cowering inside them anyway at the sight of the flashing police siren.

There was only one house in the street which had more than one floor, having three instead, but it looked to be in just as good a condition as all the rest. There wasn't a single window on the front that wasn't shattered, and the structure of the whole thing looked like it could be brought down by one powerful impact.

"That's our next stop?" Sun asked. "Looks like the kinda place-"

A gunshot rang out, and for a few seconds, there was only silence. Then there was shouting, and the night was lit up by the gunfire of a dozen different weapons.

"Yep." Sun stomped on the brake, stopping the car in front of the house. "Holy crap that's a lot of guns. I'm calling for backup. Blake, you wait – Blake!"

Blake ignored his protests, kicking the passenger door open and running inside the house through the front. The gunfire ceased just as she stepped inside, but that didn't mean the fight was over. She could hear weapons being reloaded, and the wooden floor creaking above her as people moved about slowly, whispering to each other.

"You okay? Where did she go?"

"I don't know. Stay close to me. She's a goddamn demon, did you see her, she-"

"Shut up and listen!"

The creaking stopped, and Blake walked forward carefully, straining her eyes against the darkness as she approached a set of old stairs. There was a man sprawled out on the lower steps, a gun having escaped his now-limp hand and rolled down to the floor without a single bullet having been fired.

Blake crouched beside the man and brought her ear to his chest. He was breathing, but it was strained. She pushed his head gently to the right, checking to see if he had broken his neck, then froze – his eyes were wide open, staring at her unblinkingly, as if he couldn't bring himself to close them.

Was it fear? Of her? Trifa? No, there was something else happening here, she could feel it-

"Shit!"

A body hit the floor upstairs. Gunshots. Another body. The stairs creaked high above her, towards the third and last floor.

"There you are, Marcus. Don't bother shooting."

Blake raced up the stairs, gunfire covering her steps. She flew by the second floor without pause, though a quick glance showed a dozen people sprawled out on the ground just like the man on the stairs. There was nothing natural about the way they'd fallen.

"I told you not to bother. You're not a great listener, are you?"

She reached the third floor, and the gunfire stopped. Blake saw two silhouettes on the other side of the room and dove behind a pillar to conceal her presence. She pulled back her sleeve to free the ribbon wrapped around her arm, and with her other hand retrieved her blade.

"That look. Such fear in your eyes. I guess it's not so easy to be brave when it's not a little girl you're dealing with, huh?"

The sound of bone cracking echoed throughout the room. Blake stood up, but something stopped her from jumping out of cover. That was voice… It wasn't Trifa's.

Who was that, then?

"Sorry. You can't _scream_ , much as you want to. You're completely helpless. Just like all the faunus you've terrorized, you little shithead. I can't decide if that's for better or worse… I'd love to have you squirming under my foot."

"Here's how this is going to work. First, I'm gonna beat you to a bloody pulp, and you won't be able to do anything but watch. Then I'll do the same to all your friends down there. And then…"

"Well, you can fill in the blanks from there."

Blake jumped from behind the pillar. She had only a second to see the woman on the other end of the room, her face hidden behind a mask, and the man she was holding – Marcus – before she was noticed.

The woman dropped Marcus and started to turn, her head snapping upright in surprise, before Blake's ribbon wrapped around her left wrist. Blake pulled with all her force, launching the woman towards her, then ran forward herself, clashing a knee against the stranger's face.

She expected the woman to collapse immediately, or at least stumble away with a bleeding nose, but the blow seemed to have no such effect. Blake stood in shock as her mind went to the only reasonable explanation – whoever this was, she had an Aura. And if she had an Aura…

"Who the hell…" she started to say, and too late noticed the woman recover from the surprise attack. A fist on the stomach sent Blake stumbling back, but more than that – she was trembling from top to bottom, the world doubling in front of her eyes. It was like lightning was running through her system, sending her nervous system into disarray while at the same time intensifying all her senses.

When the sensation faded, Blake found the woman staring at her, as if she was just as surprised that her own target hadn't fallen in one blow. "Who the hell are _you_?"

Blake cracked her neck and leaned forward, holding her blade firmly in front of her. "I'm the one who stops you."

She jumped forward and slashed at the woman, who simply ducked under and swung another punch at her stomach – only for her fist to pass right through the shadow clone. Behind her, Blake dropped her blade and quickly wrapped her ribbon around the stranger's wrists, binding them together, then pushed against the back of her neck, forcing her to bend forward.

Her fingers closed around the mask's edge, and she started to pull it off-

"Blake?"

She froze. It couldn't be-

The stranger jerked forward, freeing herself from the ribbon, but not without leaving her mask on Blake's fingers. Gray eyes stared back at Blake in the darkness. Pale skin turned bright orange, then a deep blue.

"Ilia?" Blake gasped.

For a split second, Ilia's skin turned pink – and then it was a vivid red. She took a step forward, bringing a clenched fist up to strike.

Just then, steps echoed from the first floor, then started coming up the stairs. Ilia disappeared as her skin matched the darkness around her. Blake reached forward blindly, trying to catch her before she ran – but the next thing she know, Ilia was jumping out of a window.

Blake ran to look… but Ilia was gone.

"Blake! Are you okay?!"

Sun ran into the room with a pistol raised. He looked around and saw Marcus on the floor, then walked to him and poked him with a foot. There was no reaction except for the wild flickering of the Cleanser's eyes, as if begging for help.

"Where's Trifa? Did you get her?" Sun asked.

Blake stepped away from the window. "It wasn't Trifa."

Hesitantly, Sun put his gun away and gestured at Marcus and the stairs behind him. "Well, who did this, then?"

"…I don't know."

Ice burrowed into Blake's heart. The world dimmed around her.

She smelled fish, and her eyes watered.

"They got away."


	5. In Another Life, She Was a Teacher

Blake could barely believe her eyes. The front of the Suntide Police Headquarters was flooded with people of both races, though most were faunus, protesting together. And it was no small protest either. The crowd was positively vicious, calling to the authorities inside the building, and more importantly, the prisoner they were keeping. If they didn't get what they wanted soon, the protest might very well turn into a full-blown riot.

But that wasn't what shocked Blake. Faunus and humans coming together for a common cause was a rarity, especially these days, but she wasn't so cynical she didn't believe it was possible. But the fact that the police wasn't responding to the protest except to contain it outside the precinct, that was a refreshing change. They had retaliated without reserve to much lesser situations in the past. By all accounts, heads should be rolling right now.

If Blake didn't know any better, she would have thought the police was with the people on this. Yet the fact that they hadn't publicized anything that even vaguely pointed to the existence of the Cleansers, despite knowing about them for twenty years, told her that the police was only acting this way because of the pressure they were under.

It was good, then, that the people of Suntide, and Vacuo in general, were joining together to demand more of them for once. If it wasn't for that, Marcus Steel might have been discreetly released already, along with all his accomplices.

Speaking of the devil… An uproar from the protesters warned Blake that the time had finally come. She stood at attention, straining her eyes to see from the opposite street as the precinct doors opened and a procession of cops came marching out, surrounding a handcuffed Marcus. The young Cleanser recoiled as the protesters showered him with insults and threats. It was as pitiful as it was pathetic.

Somehow, Blake didn't feel any sympathy towards him.

The cops escorted Marcus past the precinct gates, cutting through the crowd to reach the armored van that had arrived there an hour earlier. They opened the back and shoved him in unceremoniously, and after a few minutes of dispersing the protesters, the van drove off, headed to the maximum-security prison where Marcus would be held for the duration of his trial process. Ironically enough, that seemed like the safest place for him to be.

While some of the protesters stayed after that, most started to leave in droves, though their spirits didn't seem lowered at all. Perhaps they had other similar events to attend. Blake certainly hoped so.

With the remaining protesters becoming less focused on the precinct, Blake moved away from the open street and entered an alley. She leaned against a wall and waited patiently until, a few minutes later, Sun appeared, wearing civilian clothes to not draw attention to himself either.

"Hey, partner," he said, and pointed back over his shoulder with his thumb. "That was kinda wild, wasn't it?"

"I've seen worse," Blake said. She distinctly remembered her days of protesting with the White Fang. Joshua had always tried to keep everyone in line, but there was only so much he could do to rein in their most hot-blooded associates. And then when he was gone… "How's the situation with the police looking?"

"What you would think. Or, maybe not, actually." Sun grinned. "I'm one of the few faunus in the precinct, but a lot of my coworkers are mad about Marcus. Maybe even more than I am, which is saying something." He shrugged. "The chief is pretty pissed too, but for other reasons. I think he wishes he could just sweep the whole thing under the rug, but people aren't gonna let him. Hell, _we_ aren't gonna let him."

Blake raised an eyebrow. That _was_ surprising. Maybe she was being a bit too cynical, after all.

"Anyway, I'm trying to steer clear from him for a while," Sun said. "You can imagine he's not very happy with me."

Blake frowned. "I didn't get you into trouble, did I?"

"Nah, I got _myself_ into trouble. And nobody knows you were at the scene of the arrest," Sun said. "The official story is, I got a tip about Marcus' hiding place and when I went to check it out, there was a shootout going on. I called for backup – which is true. And when I went into the house, Marcus and all his buddies were already knocked out, and whoever did it was long gone."

"I should have stayed," Blake said. "There are a million holes in your story. You're going to get caught eventually."

"I'm not. Like I said, the chief is hating this whole Cleanser business, he just wants it over with as quickly and quietly as possible," Sun said. "I'll be okay, Blake. I'm happy you're concerned for me, though."

"I'm not-" Blake sighed. "Fine. Whatever you say."

Sun smiled widely at her, and Blake just shook her head. He was incorrigible.

"By the way, about our newest mystery person," Sun said. "You're sure it wasn't Trifa?"

"Yes, Sun. I'm sure," Blake said, crossing her arms.

"Yeah. She doesn't sound like someone who could beat up a dozen dudes at the same time." Sun nodded. "Do you remember anything about her? I mean, it wasn't Trifa, but it was a woman. And she was like you – with the superpowers, you know. Speaking of, shouldn't you maybe call your super-friends now that we're dealing with someone of that level?"

Blake glared at him.

"Right. You work alone." Sun rolled his eyes. "I suppose that means you're not gonna tell me anything useful so that I can help you find her."

He looked at her expectantly, but Blake turned away, feigning indifference. Truthfully, Sun would be quite useful in tracking Ilia down, and he had proved himself reliable, but…

This, finding Ilia, talking to her, figuring out what had happened to her… It wasn't like before, when she'd just been reluctant to let Sun in because of her reservations. This was something truly personal, and he had no place in it.

But even saying that little would be saying too much.

"I told you, we're not partners," she said. "I worked with you to get justice for Pearl. That's over now. So I'll go my own way, and you'll go yours. Doesn't have to be more complicated than that."

"Yeah, it doesn't. _You're_ making it, though," Sun said crossly, before he gave her a little smile again. "Look, whatever's going on, I just wanna help. If you don't wanna tell me everything, that's fine. I'm happy to just-"

"Are you _stupid_?"

Blake's voice came out almost like a growl, leaving a trembling in her chest and throat. All of a sudden she could feel her face burning up, and the silence of the alley was heavy in her ears, as if to remind her of what she'd just said.

Sun stared at her in shock, his mouth opening and closing as he struggled to find a reply. The worst part was, Blake just _knew_ if he said anything at all, it wouldn't be to answer her hostility in kind. He was probably searching for something to put her at ease and convince her to let him in.

 _Stupid_.

"Listen. I don't _want you_ in my life," Blake said. "I don't want to be your partner or your friend or whatever. I don't care if you mean well. I don't care about your naïve idealism. I just want you to leave. Me. Alone. Got it?"

Sun closed his mouth, his face becoming bitter. He shook his head at her, then turned and walked away.

Coming here to talk to Sun had been a mistake. Blake saw that now. She should have just left him to wonder about her after Marcus' arrest. Maybe then he would have been less hurt.

She had made a lot of mistakes like that recently…

It was time to start correcting them.

* * *

_How do you say goodbye?_

That was a hard question, and it wasn't the first time Blake had asked it to herself. She'd never found a good answer, either. She'd never said goodbye to anyone. Sometimes she never had a chance to. But more often than not, it was a choice, even if an unconscious one.

Disappearing was always easier than saying goodbye.

 _How_ can _you? Again?_

Easier didn't mean it wasn't just as painful. Perhaps even more painful in the end. Was that why she was finding it so difficult to go through with this?

She didn't want to hurt. More importantly, she didn't want Pearl to hurt. And what could hurt her more than being abandoned now, after everything she'd gone through?

And yet the longer Blake stayed, the more her inevitable leave would damage them both. This wasn't a clean solution. It wasn't easy. But it was the best one.

* * *

" _As long as I have you, Blake, I'll be fine."_

* * *

The elevator opened with a _ding_. Blake shook her head and stepped out into the hallway. She stopped before Pearl's room, a hand resting on the door as she took a deep breath and steeled herself for what was to come.

Better to do it calmly. Honestly. Everything would be okay if she just did this right.

She pushed open the door, and all her plans went out the window.

Pearl was sitting on the edge of her bed, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, her feet dangling just a few inches above the floor. In front of her was Sienna, holding a wheelchair steady. And near the windows was Fennec Albain, watching them with an odd expression on his face – something in-between bewilderment and wonder.

"Blake!" Pearl smiled at her. "I was wondering when you'd be back. And you're just in time to witness my moment of triumph!" She looked at space between her and the wheelchair and scratcher her cheek. "Just as soon as I get the courage."

Blake looked at Sienna, and the older woman just smiled and shrugged. "How about you help her out? She's too proud to ask herself."

"Am not!" Pearl hissed. "Blake, please?"

Though hesitant, Blake moved over to the bed and wrapped an arm around Pearl, then carefully helped her lower herself to the floor. A small moan escaped Pearl's as the weight of her body was redistributed, the slightest movements of her torso only making the pain worse. But she kept a brave face all the way to the wheelchair, until finally she was sat in it and she allowed herself a sigh of relief.

"You're already being discharged, then?" Blake asked. "It's only been four days since the surgery, Pearl. Isn't this a little early?"

"A little early? You're kidding me!" Pearl gripped the arms of the wheelchair with a feral indignation. "If I have to spend one more day in this hellhole, I'm gonna lose my mind. No thank you, I'm leaving."

"Pearl's doctors said there's nothing more to be done for her here. Now it's just a matter of resting and letting her body do the rest of the work," Sienna said. "Basically, as long as she takes care of herself, she'll be fine. And if she doesn't, someone will have to do that for her - and _someone_ might feel tempted to drive her right back to this fine establishment she calls a hellhole."

"I'm not a child," Pearl muttered. "It's not like I'm gonna go roll around in the mud or something.

"So you have somewhere you can go?" Blake asked.

A part of her hoped that Pearl would mention some distant relative or a friend, or maybe even her seemingly-estranged parents, but Blake knew that was hoping for a miracle. She had a good idea of where this conversation was leading, and she didn't like it one bit.

"Sienna offered for me to stay at her house," Pearl said. "Apparently she's filthy rich, so yeah, I think staying there with the butlers and the jacuzzi and the liquid gold fountains will be good for me."

"You've got _some_ imagination, kid." Sienna looked at Blake and raised her hands defensively. "Now, I know what you're thinking. This _must_ be a political stunt, but I can assure it's not. Fennec and I have planned several measures to keep her stay in my house an absolute secret." She shrugged. "There would be no sense in doing this if everyone knew, after all."

Blake crossed her arms. "Explain."

"Well. I don't like the thought of Pearl spending every waking minute in this here hospital," Sienna said, a severe expression on her face. "A hospital, mind you, that has received pretty much uninterrupted media coverage since she was taken here. There are _many eyes_ looking into this very room, Blake."

Blake nodded, now understanding Sienna's angle. With Marcus arrested, his Cleanser friends must be looking for every opportunity to strike back by hurting Pearl. The longer she stayed in the hospital, the more danger she would be in, and Blake couldn't be there twenty-four hours a day to defend her.

"You're free to come along and stay with her, Blake," Sienna said. "I think I can spare a room for you. And can you really pass up the opportunity to comb my house – my one safe haven! – for evidence of my crooked ways? That'll tank my campaign, no doubt about it."

"Sienna!" Fennec spoke for the first time, looking at Sienna like she was a student performing pranks in the classroom.

"What? It'll be fine, Fennec. Hell, it'll be fun, even," Sienna said. "You two can make it a game. Blake snooping around, you covering stuff up. Pearl can keep score."

Fennec turned away, grumbling under his breath. Sienna grinned, then took out her phone as an alarm started to ring.

"The choice is up to you, Blake. Pearl, I'm looking forward to seeing you tonight. Maybe we can have dinner together if I'm not too late," Sienna said, turning off the alarm. "Fennec will drive you. I would do it myself, but that would hardly be subtle… Besides, I have a bear to poke."

"Sienna, please." Fennec sighed. "You're pushing your luck. Do you _want to_ -"

"It's my favorite pastime, and you can't take it away from me!" Sienna said imperiously before strutting out of the room.

Fennec rubbed between his eyes and gave a heavy sigh.

"What did she mean by that?" Pearl asked.

"Sienna got it in her head that she _needs_ to have a public debate with councilman Cobalt if she's to be elected. Since then, she hasn't stopped pushing for it, and the longer he ignores her, the more stubborn she gets," Fennec said tiredly. "It's going to be the death of her."

"Oh. Well, uh, I don't get politics, so…" Pearl looked at Blake hopefully. "Maybe you can explain it to me later, Blake?"

The thought of exploring Sienna's home was at the same time intriguing and terrifying. Blake hardly expected Sienna to have invited her as a spur-of-the-moment decision, so the chances that she'd find something incriminating were low.

And now that Sienna was gone, Blake remembered why she'd come to the hospital in the first place – to say goodbye to Pearl. But if she'd been reluctant to leave the girl before, now the idea was inconceivable. Blake couldn't abandon Pearl to be subjected to whatever intentions Sienna had for her.

And maybe… Maybe she could find something about Ilia in Sienna's house. There had to be a reason why Ilia had shown up now, of all times, and Blake had a feeling it was related to Sienna somehow.

"I think I can think up a lesson for you," Blake said. She turned to Fennec and put her hands on top of Pearl's chair, her eyes looking straight into his, making sure he knew they were stood regarding each other. "Will we be going now?"

Fennec gave her a derisive look, then turned away and walked out of the room.

"Cheerful guy," Pearl said, grinning.

Blake shook her head and followed Fennec, pushing Pearl along.

* * *

Sienna hadn't been exaggerating when she said she'd taken measures so that Pearl wouldn't be seen leaving the hospital. The hallway outside of her room had been deserted despite the abundance of patients on the same floor, and when they got out of the elevator on the parking lot, that too was deserted. Blake had to wonder whose strings Sienna was pulling that she could arrange these things so easily. Something worth investigating.

They boarded a van, Fennec taking the wheel, while Blake sat with Pearl at the back, where the opaque windows wouldn't allow anyone to see them from the outside. From there, they left the hospital, only stopping briefly at the gates as Fennec identified himself at the exit.

Blake kept her guard up throughout the whole ride. She didn't know what to expect, but nothing was out of the question when it came to the White Fang. It came as an odd shock, then, that Fennec was driving them _towards_ the more well-off parts of the city, the houses and buildings they drove by a far call from the neighborhoods Blake, and especially Pearl, were used to.

Finally, Fennec took a turn, and Blake saw a house appear a little ways after the street corner, surrounded by green, well-kept stretches of land. It wasn't what Blake would call a mansion, not even close, but it was impressive nonetheless. By the way Pearl gasped and stretched her neck to see, she must have thought similarly.

They drove past a mass of reporters gathered in the sidewalk, and Blake was doubly thankful for the anonymity the windows afforded them. Fennec swerved and entered the house limits, nodding wordlessly to the security guards at the gates. He took a stone path to the front of the house and stopped there, turning the van sideways towards the outside, so that Blake and Pearl could get out without being seen by the relentless reporters and their cameras.

"Wow," Pearl said as she was rolled into the entrance hall. "You know, I was joking before, and it's not like I've got a lot of perspective with these things… But this house is _really nice_ , right?"

Blake hummed in agreement. The house didn't look as big from the inside as it did from the outside, but that didn't mean much. It was what could be expected of a middle-class family – higher middle-class, to be precise. Except Sienna was just one person, and in Blake's eyes, not the type to own a house, especially one like this.

Sure, steal one, appropriate one, that she could believe. Not _own_ one.

"If you're curious, I can show you the deed to the property," Fennec said dryly, walking past Blake and Pearl.

"Can't you fake one of those?" Pearl blurted out, only to wilt in her chair as Fennec glared at her. "I mean… nice plants!"

She gestured at a nearby vase filled with tulips. Fennec put his hands behind his back and smiled.

"Thank you, I water them myself. I take care of all of Sienna's flowers, actually," he said. "Allow me to show you to your room, Miss Pearl."

He walked away. Pearl gave Blake a look of amazement, then went after him, rolling the wheels of her chair with her own hands with the enthusiasm of a child introduced to a new playground.

Blake frowned, looking around the hall skeptically. This wasn't how she'd thought her day would go. But she supposed all that was left for her to do, then, was to make the best of it.

* * *

Fennec didn't give them much a tour, only showing Blake and Pearl the essential parts of the house, like the kitchen and the bathrooms, before taking them straight to Pearl's room. There was very little to it – a bed and a wardrobe, a window that gave a view to the small garden behind the house, and a TV sitting atop a dusty wooden counter that one could watch while lying down. It wasn't much, but it beat a hospital room any day of the week.

Fennec didn't offer to show Blake her own room before leaving, which she took as a sign that he was hoping she wouldn't stay. She supposed she ought to be angry at him for that, but not being too eager to stay herself, she just let the slight pass without making an issue of it.

"Okay. This is nice…" Pearl muttered as she settled into the bed, covering herself with three layers of blankets and resting her back against a tiny mountain of pillows. "I just traded spending all my time resting in a bed, to spending all my time resting in a softer bed. But I guess I should be thankful anyway…"

"It's okay to be frustrated," Blake said. "Just give yourself time to heal."

"Yeah, whatever." Pearl looked around and found a remote on the nightstand next to the bed. She took it and turned the TV on, then sighed. "Been a while since I've done this. Time to be a good kid and rot my brain with cartoons." She looked at Blake shiftily. "Not that I _like_ cartoons."

Blake shrugged and walked to the window, pushing the curtains aside with a finger to gaze at the flowery grounds below. Sienna had a garden. The whole world was going mad.

And beyond the garden, scattered in all corners of the grounds, were guards in constant patrol. The number of them was a little daunting, but Blake supposed it wasn't entirely unjustified, considering the position Sienna was putting herself in nowadays. Blake only wondered where these guards came from – were they hired, or did they use to be White Fang?

"So, Blake… Wanna explain politics to me?" Pearl asked.

Blake sighed. "What happened to rotting your brain?"

"That's boring. I wanna lose all hope in mankind instead."

Pearl shuffled to the right, then patted the vacant spot next to her. Defeated, Blake took off her shoes and sat down on the bed. She shifted around, sitting stiffly, before she allowed herself to relax little by little and brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped har arms around them.

The last time she'd done something like this, it had been with Ilia. They'd often stayed up until morning came, just lying in bed and talking to each other about nothings. Those had been some of Blake's best memories of her time at the White Fang, and despite everything, they'd always brought a smile to her face.

Not anymore. Now, they were just painful.

"Blake…?" Pearl asked, frowning. "You there?"

"Yeah. Sorry," Blake said. "Just thinking of how to approach this."

Pearl's eyes narrowed, and Blake knew she hadn't been fooled for a second. Of course, there was no way for Pearl to deduce what was going on inside Blake's head, but she was sharp enough to recognize something was gnawing at her.

"Well, what do you know of politics?" Blake asked. "Just the basics."

"Uh… We have a council, and we have elections for the people that make that council… which means Vacuo a democracy," Pearl said slowly. " _Which means_ … We're either ruled by demons, or…"

"A democracy is a system where the people – everyone – has power. Not literally – in our case it means we can vote for who's going to represent us," Blake said. "Also, _rule_ means something very different from _govern_. But I can't blame you for that mistake, considering our government."

"Yeah! Screw the establishment!" Pearl exclaimed, raising her arms excitedly, only to wince and hide them back underneath her blankets, a mopey expression on her face.

Realizing teaching Pearl the full extent of how their government worked would take hours, and frankly, more knowledge than she had without proper study, Blake decided to cut to the chase and explain only what was relevant.

"Let's take this to the top, okay?" she said. "Do you know how many members the Council consists of?"

"Eight!" Pearl started to raise her arms again to show the number to Blake with her fingers, but thought twice and kept them where they were. "Eight."

"Right. The Council has eight members. And we have elections every four years," Blake said. "But we don't substitute all eight members every election, only four. So a Councilmember's full term is eight years, but the whole Council won't be the same for all that time. That's because-"

"Ooh, I know that!" Pearl interrupted. "We do that _because_ , if a guy gets in the Council, but he screws up or doesn't do what he promised, at least then we can vote other people in to, like… get him in line or something like that. Maybe whack him in the head for being bad."

"You're right. But here's the thing – it's really all a trick," Blake said, and smiled bitterly at the shock in Pearl's face. "An eight-year term just means they stay in office for longer without having to do anything worthwhile. The only time they do anything is when elections are happening, and then they use their influence to get their friends and pollical allies in. Then four more years pass, and the friends they elected help _them_ get reelected… It's a vicious cycle."

"Well, that's… that's…!" Pearl glared at her lap and huffed. "You took that _hope in mankind_ thing really seriously."

Blake nodded sympathetically. She'd had her own revelation about Vacuo's government when she was even younger than Pearl, and she had been just as upset.

"So that's the system Sienna is trying to take on?" Pearl asked mildly. "I hadn't thought about it before, but… Shoot, she's got her cut work out for her, hasn't she?"

"The Council has maintained an arrangement for as long as it's existed. Sienna is a complete outside to it, in so many ways. She's a faunus, a woman, a…" _A terrorist_. "Yeah. Her chances aren't great."

"Which I guess you aren't all that upset about," Pearl said. "What's that thing she's got going with that council dude, by the way?"

"You mean Cobalt? He's like the best example of everything that's wrong with the Council. He's corrupt as all hell, and he's been elected four times already, which is just next to illegal, but who cares about that?" Blake said. "And I suppose he's Sienna's main competitor."

"Because he's the worst?" Pearl asked confusedly.

"Because the voting process is not as simple as how many people vote for a candidate," Blake said. "If it was just raw numbers, a lot of places would go unrepresented because they're just not as big in the large scale of things. That happens anyway, but that's beside the point."

Pearl groaned. "Seriously, I was _just joking_ about losing all hope in mankind."

"The supposed fix is, we divide Vacuo in four sections," Blake said. "We've got the South sector, which is mostly the capital, Suntide, and a small area around it. Then East, which is Shade and most of the east coast. And then North and Center-West, which are much less populated."

"I'd like to live in the desert," Pearl mumbled. "People don't get shot in the desert."

Blake decided not to rob her of that illusion.

"Each sector has its own candidates during the elections, and then those four get into the Council. It's a good idea, except-"

"Oh, come on."

"Except the system has loopholes that allow people to go to the other sectors and get elected there, even if they don't live there, and then they just come back here afterward and live happy, not doing a thing for the people who voted on them," Blake finished.

"Then why _the hell_ do people keep electing them? Is everyone stupid in this freaking country?" Pearl growled.

"Like I said, they have support from the Council already. They make people vote for who they like, in exchange for favors like protection, healthcare – all sorts of corruption." Blake paused. "Still wanna live in the desert?"

Pearl shook her head, a look of futile anger marking her features. Blake pitied her, but she knew learning all of this would be better for her in the end. Ignorance was a blessing – if you didn't mind people taking advantage of you, that is.

"Why would Sienna run for Council here, then?" Pearl asked. "Couldn't she just run off to some God-forsaken corner of Vacuo and shake some desert-fried heads and get them to vote for her? Hell, the White Fang could do that for her. Why compete with that Cobalt asshole?"

"Because…" Blake frowned. "To be honest, I have no idea."

"Allow me to explain."

Blake nearly jumped out of her skin, as did Pearl. The door of the guest room opened slowly, and Fennec entered with soft steps, his hands joined behind his back, as seemed to be a common habit of his.

"Fennec! I mean, Mister Albain!" Pearl shouted. "Were you listening on the other side of the door? For how long?!"

Fennec just stared at them impassively and continued to walk until he was standing at the end of the bed. Uneasy, Blake got up and walked to the window, pretending to be interested in the garden – while quietly lowering her hand to her blade, hiding the movement from Fennec's eyes with the rest of her body.

"It's true that Sienna put herself in a great disadvantage by running for Council in the South sector, instead of, say, the North. She was very aware of that fact, but it only made her more determined to do it here," Fennec said. "Yes, she could have used the White Fang to strong-arm people to vote for her, but then she would have been no different than the Councilmen she despises. According to her, that would have been a meaningless victory."

 _According to her_. "You don't agree, then?" Blake asked.

"She's certainly made things dreadfully difficult for herself. She has little chance to convert Cobalt's voting base, so to win against Cobalt, she's having to depend entirely on a voting population that has been untapped so far – the faunus of Suntide, most of which have a wrong perception of her." Fennec smiled. "But I have trust in Sienna. If she says she can rise to the challenge, then I am committed to help her, however she deems necessary."

"Like being her gardener?" Pearl asked.

Fennec raised his nose snidely. "The flowers are but a bonus."

"And her decision to run against Cobalt has nothing to do with her ego?" Blake asked piercingly.

She had intended to provoke Fennec, but to her surprise, he smiled at her, as if in that moment he recognized that she too was in on an old inside joke.

"Yes. That too," Fennec said. "Nothing would make her happier than to stand triumphant over Cobalt. It would send a message to all bigoted people of Vacuo, she says. _True change is coming_." He nodded slightly. "And she truly would be in a unique position of power. There has never been a faunus on the Council before. Not only would she be the first, but to get elected here of all places…"

"So, basically, she's making the ultimate power-move? Damn, girl…" Pearl said.

"Indeed." Fennec took a step backward. "I assume my input served to elucidate Sienna's strategy?"

"Eluci-what?" Pearl blinked. "Yeah, sure. Thanks, Mister Albain. You know, you're a little weird, but I kinda like your style. Maybe don't eavesdrop on people, though."

"I will take your advice into consideration, Miss Pearl. Now, if you may excuse me…" Fennec cleared his throat. "Sienna requested I make cookies for tonight's dessert."

Like a robot, he turned around and left the room. Blake and Pearl looked at each other, so astonished they couldn't form the question that was going through both their heads – had that been a joke? By Fennec Albain?

Fennec Albain was capable of making jokes?

"You know, Blake, uhm… I'm a little tired now. I think the moving's catching up to me," Pearl said quietly. "I'm gonna try and sleep for a bit."

"Do you need anything? Maybe some water or food?" Blake asked.

"I'm fine. Just wanna crash and not think of how stupid it is that we're ruled by demons," Pearl said. "Besides, don't you have something you need to do?"

"No?" Blake looked at her confusingly. "What are you getting at?"

Pearl smirked. "Go snoop around, dummy."

* * *

Like Blake had expected, searching Sienna's house did not wield many interesting results. Either the house had been cleaned of any damning evidence before she'd stepped into it, or it had never hidden any secrets at all.

Blake did find the deed of the house in a conspicuously semi-open drawer in the living room. She was certain Fennec had left it there for her to find. It looked legitimate enough – but she was no expert, of course.

When night fell, there was only one room Blake had yet to explore - a door on the second floor, at the end of the single hallway that the stairs led up to. She'd tried to open it before, but it was locked, so she'd given up on it quickly. But now that all her other options were used, to no gain, she was frustrated enough to try something bolder.

_It's your fault. If you hadn't encouraged me…_

Blake thrust her blade at the gap between the door and the doorframe, pushing with all her force and wincing at the noise the wood made as the metal slid and scratched against it. She stopped when there was only a couple fingers' width of the blade left unburied, then stepped back and laid her hands together against the left side of the handle. Then, she pushed again, beads of sweat forming on her forehead, until finally…

The door opened with a bang, and splinters went flying in every direction. Blake looked down at her blade and grinned. "Thanks, Ruby." She put the weapon away, then stepped into the room.

Immediately, she felt claustrophobic. She could barely stand without her head hitting the slanted ceiling, and the air was so thick with dust it made her whole face itch. There wasn't a light switch in sight, so she was left to navigate the place with only her faunus vision.

Not that there much to navigate, really. Unless she was missing something, all there was in the miniscule room were boxes, all of them stacked in a corner away from the door – abandoned.

Blake kneeled beside the stack and grabbed the highest box. She put it down and opened it, ripping off tape.

There were clothes inside. Old clothes, from the smell of them. Shirts, pants, sweaters, nightgowns… Men's and women's.

Blake shook her head. She couldn't begin to fathom why Sienna kept all these clothes locked away like this. She pushed the box aside and took another one from the stack, hoping that it held something more useful, but it was just another odd assortment of old clothes.

This was useless… Unless it was all meant to cover up something important. Dropping all subtlety, Blake started to take the clothes off the box and toss them aside, not caring where they landed. If she had to go through every box to find what she was looking for, then-

Her hand closed around a shoe, but something about it stopped her from discarding it like the other clothes. Blake brought it close to her eyes to examine it, and what was wrong with it became evident immediately. The left side of the shoe was in a state of tatters, with chunks of it outright missing. She ran a finger over the fabric, careful not to damage it further. Clearly, it had been burned.

Blake put the shoe down and looked around, a sense of unease weighing down on her. She reached for a sweater she'd tossed aside and took a closer look at it. Its orange color had lost its luster over the years, but that was nothing compared to the gray scars that ran across it.

"Well… crap. Does this mean you won the game, at least?"

Blake dropped the sweater and jumped to her feet. Her head hit the ceiling, and though it was protected by her Aura, the impact still sent the world spinning around her.

"Watch the ceiling," Sienna said, an apathetic smirk splitting her lips. "I'm not going to say you deserved that, but…"

Blake stepped past her into the hallway, rubbing her head. "I'm… I'm sorry," she said, her ears dragging her bow into her hair. "I shouldn't have gone in there."

"You did nothing I wasn't expecting." Sienna eyed the damaged doorframe. "Though you could have been a little more considerate with my property."

"Yes, I'll… fix that," Blake said.

"Didn't know you're a carpenter. Aren't you full of surprises?" Sienna rolled her eyes. "I'll talk to Fennec about it tomorrow. Speaking of – did he not get my text about the cookies? I should have been able to smell those from the front door."

Sienna spun in her heels and walked away, storming down the stairs with a fierce look in her eyes. Not knowing what to do, Blake simply went after her, following her thundering footsteps into the kitchen.

"Unbelievable." Sienna gestured broadly at the clean counter and table. "What are we supposed to have for dessert now?" She shook her head. "So be it. Do we wake up Pearl, or do we let her sleep a little more? I'm afraid her food will go cold, but she does need sleep. Blake?"

She turned abruptly to face Blake, one foot tapping restlessly against the floor. Blake stayed silent, her eyes straying from Sienna to the bag of takeout food next to her on the table.

"Oh. Right. I'm overwhelming you," Sienna said. She took a deep breath, then pulled back a chair and sat down. "Sorry. I've had a long, _stressful_ day, and I'm the opposite of an expert on winding down." She gestured at the bag. "I got burgers for myself and Pearl on the way home. And it seems that, by some fortunate accident, they misplaced an extra burger in my bag, so…"

She opened the bag and pushed it towards Blake, shooting her an innocent smile.

"Actually, I was just on my way out," Blake said.

"Yeah? You got some place to be?" Sienna placed an elbow on the table and rested her head on her hand. "Such a busy bee you are. Can't even afford half an hour to talk to me when I'm at my most vulnerable."

"Do you want me to ruin your campaign?" Blake asked. "Is that why you keep taunting me?"

"What if I keep taunting you just because I find it fun?" Sienna said. "I'm not worried. You might not buy this, Blake, but I have nothing to hide. You already have all the tools to ruin me. And if you choose to use them, well, what can I do about that?" She shrugged. "I just want to have dinner with someone I respect. Is that so hard to believe?"

"Maybe you're doing all this, manipulating me, to convince me not to expose you."

Sienna snorted. "You give me too much credit." She reached inside the bag and took out a hamburger, then started to munch on it, seemingly content to eat by herself if Blake wasn't going to relent to her wishes.

Blake looked towards the open doorway, knowing that there was nothing stopping her from walking out of the house. It would take some effort to sneak past Sienna's guards and the reporters on the street, but it was nothing she couldn't accomplish without careful preparation. And from there, she could go anywhere in the city.

But Pearl would remain here, alone but for Sienna and Fennec. And though Blake was certain Sienna was still lying about her motivations, she didn't pose any real threat. There would be no harm in staying.

Blake quickly shut down that voice in the back of her head that was starting to sympathize with Sienna.

"So, what's all that stuff upstairs?" Blake asked as she sat down, but didn't as much as reach for the takeout.

Sienna paused mid-chewing, her gaze fixing on something invisible for a couple seconds before she finished her bite and shrugged. "Sentimental junk I should have thrown away ages ago," she said. "Feel free to dig deeper later. It's mostly all the same, but there might be one or two more interesting boxes – with photos and such."

"I didn't take you for the type to keep stuff like that," Blake said.

"What, you think I've got a stone-cold heart, Blake?" Sienna's fingers dug into her burger. "Everyone's got sides of themselves they don't like to show. You, of all people, should understand that."

She looked at Blake, eyes sharp like knives. Blake sat tense in her chair, intensely curious as to why the topic struck a nerve with Sienna, and so strongly at that. One minute earlier she was almost begging Blake to eat with her, now she looked ready to kick her out the front door.

After what felt like an eternity, Sienna's expression softened, and she gave Blake a look that was at the same time a warning and an apology.

"I wish we had cookies," she muttered bitterly. "Did Fennec show you around the house at least? Everything up to your standards?"

"It's a nice place," Blake said, electing not to tell Sienna where she'd been sleeping for the last few months, for her safety and her dignity. "How did you come to own it?"

"I bought it, of course," Sienna replied plainly. "And no, that business had nothing to do with the White Fang. If you're doubtful, plenty of different sources have already verified that claim. Check the news."

"I'll have to, since apparently you won the lottery recently and I missed it," Blake said.

"If only."

Sienna started to take another bite, but noticed the unsatisfied look in Blake's eyes and sighed, putting down her burger.

"My parents happened to be a little on the wealthy side. They were both self-made, successful business owners, and they were smart about how they kept their money," Sienna said. "When they passed, I inherited what they'd accumulated, which turned out to be quite a lot – not anything absurd, mind you, but enough to give me a comfortable life for a few years."

"And that worked out wonderfully," Blake said.

"Hmph." Sienna leaned back in her chair, arms crossed as she stared at the table before her. "I didn't even touch the money, actually. I was still a minor, so my uncle became my legal guardian. The saint that he was, he invested the money for my sake, when I would have spent it all doing God knows what – and he must have shared my father's business sense, because when I got my hands on it… Hoo, boy. Thankfully I'd grown _some_ sense by then." She gestured at the ceiling and walls. "And here I am today."

"So, basically… You're a rich heiress."

Sienna's lips quirked into a smirk. "I suppose I am. Though most of the money went into buying the land here. Just made me that bit more legit in the eyes of the critics, you know?" Her smile wavered, and none of it reached her eyes. "Have you ever tried to find your parents, Blake?"

Blake's heart jumped to her throat, at the same time that a numbing coldness pierced through it. "No. I haven't."

"Well, you should. At least so you can hear their voices and know they're okay," Sienna said. "I could try and find them for you if you'd like? After that it would be up to you, whether you want-"

"How did your parents die?"

Blake's voice rang through the kitchen, and the memory of it was imprinted in the silence that fell afterward. Sienna's eyes sparked with untold anger, and Blake prepared to get on her feet and run, a resurgent fear from years past taking hold of her.

Sienna closed her eyes, and a deep breath escaped from between her lips.

"They came at night," she said. "I was thirteen, and I was sleeping in my room. The next thing I knew, everything was on fire. My father kicked my door open and grabbed me, and ran down the stairs with me under his arm. We got out as the house was falling apart, into the front lawn. My mother was already there… So were they."

"I'm not… I can't tell you what happened next. I don't even know if what I remember is what actually happened, or I just…" Sienna shivered. "All I know is, they made me watch, and then they left me there. Not out of mercy. Just a message. Some kind of lesson to – to…"

Sienna stood up and went to the sink, leaning on it heavily, legs trembling like they were about to give out. Her breathing was so loud in Blake's ears, they might as well have been standing side by side.

"I'm sorry," Blake said, on the edge of her seat. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine. You…" Sienna gasped. "You're terrible, but I pushed you."

Sienna lifted a hand off the sink and ran it back through her hair.

"You know the part that really sticks out in my mind? The days after, before my uncle got there to take me away. I would tell everyone, _everyone_ , about the people who killed my parents. Because I remembered their faces, I knew some of their names – because they weren't strangers, some of them were my _neighbors_. And no one believed me. Who would listen to the confused, broken, scarred little faunus girl?"

Sienna turned around, a defeated smile on her lips. Blake leaned back on her chair, connecting dots inside her mind as the shock of the story subsided.

"The killers. Were they Cleansers?" she asked.

"Yeah. Though I didn't know that at the time," Sienna said. "I didn't know that's what they called themselves until a few years ago, when Fennec and Corsac brought them to my attention. Until then, they were the people who murdered my mom and dad."

"Holy shit. Is that why you didn't want me to go after them? I thought you'd be happy to…" Blake frowned. "You really were scared for me."

"That was part of it. I wouldn't say most of it, but, yeah," Sienna said.

She walked back to her chair and poked her burger with a finger, and scowled when there was no warmth to be felt.

"One day, when I was sixteen, I ran away from home – from my uncle and the White Fang," Sienna said. "I had decided I was done being scared, and that I would never listen to my uncle ever again – the first of many occasions I said that to him. I took off, back to the town I was raised in, to kill each and every one of the humans that had taken my parents from me."

"I was going to do it, too. I tracked down the first one, got acquainted with his house, made plans… The next day, my vengeance would start." Sienna shook her head. "And then my uncle found me, and somehow, he talked me out of it. I don't know how he did it. But he saved me that day, because if I had gotten to that man, I wouldn't have stopped until I was over."

"He tried so hard to guide me to the right path. If only I had been more like him…"

Blake rubbed her temple. _Shut up, voice. Shut up!_

"If you've known about the Cleansers for so long, why haven't you done anything about them?" Blake said. "Like you said, it's not like you took Joshua's message to heart."

"I don't know, Blake." Sienna threw her hands up. "Maybe I was afraid!"

"Seems like you still are," Blake said. "You've got a platform. If the police aren't going to tell the people about the Cleansers, then why don't you?"

"You want me to start a witch hunt, then? Is that what we need right now?" Sienna said. "You're right, Blake. I could tell everyone about the Cleansers. Better yet, I could take the White Fang and send it to eradicate them all. Problem's resolved. And if a few innocent humans get killed in the process, that's just the price we'll have to pay for peace."

"…That wouldn't last for long," Blake said.

"Exactly. Now you're starting to see why I'm doing all of this. If we're going to fix this country, then we're gonna need to do it the right way," Sienna said. "There are no elaborate schemes, Blake. No ulterior motives. Just a will to do the right thing."

Blake held back a sigh. There would be no shutting up that voice anytime soon.

"I'm not going to help you," she said quietly.

"That's fine. You do what you think is right." Sienna grabbed her burger and took a bite, then winced and put it down immediately. "We're gonna need the microwave for this crap. Will you eat now?"

"…Sure."

Sienna got up, smiling radiantly, and started to take plates out of a cabinet.

"There's just one more thing I'd like to tell you, Blake, while we're still being so wonderfully open with each other – one of us more than the other." Sienna faked a cough. "You saved Adam."

Blake flinched. "Excuse me?"

"Six years ago, on that train. He was going to hurt a lot of people then, gotten blood on his hands he never would have been able to wash off. But you stopped him. You saved him, even if it doesn't feel like it," Sienna said. "And now I have to apologize to you. When he showed up on my doorstep, hurt and scared, I should have done like my uncle would have. I should have helped him. Instead, I cursed him and turned him away. If Adam ever had a shot at redemption, I took it away from him that day."

"You can't blame yourself for what he did," Blake said. "Adam got on a wrong path long before he met you. If anyone is to blame for not helping him, it's me."

"That's very sweet of you, Blake, but you're wrong," Sienna said. "Let's not dwell on what we can't change, though. I'm going to wake Pearl up and help her get over here so we can eat together. Meanwhile, can you set the table?"

Blake nodded and got up. It was surreal to her that she was taking such a request from Sienna, but after everything they'd shared tonight, she would feel like a brat refusing to do such a simple task.

"Sienna, just…" Blake said, stopping Sienna before she walked out of the kitchen. "There is one thing you could help me with. If that's not too much trouble."

"Really?" Sienna turned around, and Blake could swear she saw her make a little celebrating hop. "Anything, just ask."

"Have you… Do you know where Ilia is these days?" Blake asked hesitantly. "Ilia Amitola. You might not remember her…"

"Amitola…? Ah, I know who you're talking about. The little redhead who used to follow you everywhere," Sienna said. "I'm afraid I haven't seen her in years. Don't even know if she's still with the White Fang. But I can ask Corsac for you, see if he knows anything."

"That would be great. Thanks, Sienna."

Sienna smiled at her, and much to Blake's surprise, left the kitchen without making any questions. That probably ruled out the possibility of Ilia working with her… unless Sienna was one hell of an actress and had prepared herself for that conversation.

"No elaborate schemes," Blake repeated to herself.

She knew better than to believe anything Sienna said. If crafting an entire backstory for herself was what she needed to get Blake to trust her, then that was what Sienna would do.

Blake knew better. She always knew better.

Deep in thought, she started to set the table for dinner.


	6. The Little Lioness That Could

"Oh, wow. These cookies…" Pearl's jaw dropped. "Your cookies are amazing, Mr. Albain!"

Fennec grunted, his chin lifting ever so slightly in a show of smugness. Pearl grabbed another cookie from the pile on the kitchen table and bit off almost half of it at once, then swallowed and sighed contently.

For her part, Blake tried to be a little subtler about how much she liked the cookies. Like Pearl, she thought they were excellent, but she didn't need Fennec to know that. She didn't trust him at all, and no amount of cookies would change that.

Though she wouldn't say no to him baking another batch.

"Where did you learn to make cookies this good, man?" Pearl asked while she waited for her stomach to settle and she could take another bite. "I didn't know the White Fang had kitchen workshops."

"They have no such thing," Fennec said. "This is my grandmother's recipe as she taught me herself. May she rest in peace."

"You knew your grandma?" Pearl blinked. "Wild."

"Mr. Albain sure is full of surprises," Blake said drily.

Fennec's face soured as he gave her a sideways look. "Not everyone joins the White Fang out of desperation, Ms. Belladonna. Some of us cannot help but support the cause."

He smiled wryly, and Blake gripped her cookie harder, almost breaking it in half.

"Well, uh…" Pearl said, detecting the tension between the two. "Thank you so much for the cookies, Mr. Albain. I haven't been able to eat very well recently, so you really made my day." She tapped her index fingers together while looking up at him. "Would it be too much to ask for you to make more tomorrow? And every day after that? Please?"

Fennec seemed to balk at the suggestion, before he broke one of his rare honest smiles. "That can be arranged, Ms. Pearl."

Pearl cheered quietly and clapped her hands, then returned to her self-imposed duty of reducing the pile of cookies to mere crumbs.

Suddenly, the front door slammed open. Blake jumped and reached for the knife drawer, but before she could open it, Sienna walked into the room and threw herself at Fennec, planting a kiss on his cheek.

"Fennec, you beautiful son of a-" She stopped when she saw Pearl staring at her wide-eyed from the kitchen table. "You beautiful friend of mine. You're incredible!"

"You know I'm fifteen, not five, right?" Pearl mumbled. "Probably know more swears than you, too."

Sienna hopped away from Fennec, a radiant smile on her lips. Fennec cleared his throat and rubbed his cheek with the back of his hand, looking at everything in the kitchen but her.

"What's going on?" Blake asked, backing away from the drawer. Thankfully she hadn't gotten to opening to it – that would have been awkward, to say the least.

"Fennec, despite his very persistent and vocal opposition to my wishes, has been negotiating with Cobalt's team behind my back this entire time," Sienna said. "It's finally happening. Tonight, live from the VNN studios, I will debate that bastard into the motherfu- into the _frickin_ ground!"

"I could say the nastiest stuff right now and it would leave all of you _stunned_ ," Pearl said.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I kind of agree with Fennec," Blake said. "Sienna, what exactly are you trying to accomplish by debating Cobalt? You know that, whatever you have to say to him, he's not going to listen. You could talk to a rock and have a more productive conversation."

"But you see, Blake, it's not _him_ that needs to listen to me," Sienna said. "Just tune in at six and watch. Who knows, I may say a thing or two that even _you_ will like. Could you imagine such a wonder?"

"It's good to know you're still capable of dreaming," Blake said,

Sienna rolled her eyes. "Yeah, keep being a smartass while you eat cookies under my roof." She glared at Fennec. "So you'll bake for _them,_ huh? That was the last kiss you ever received from me, snake. Now come with me, I need your opinion on a couple zingers to _destroy_ Cobalt with."

Sienna walked away determinedly, and Fennec followed her with a resigned expression on his face.

"Crap baskets!" Pearl yelled after them, then smiled at Blake. "How'd you like that? Too much for you? I can do even worse!"

Blake sighed, thoroughly unimpressed.

* * *

With one hour left on the clock until Sienna's debate started, Blake and Pearl went to the latter's room and got comfortable on the bed. Pearl turned the TV on and tuned into the VNN channel, where a panel of commentators were predicting how the debate would go.

The girl went silent as she listened to the conversation, her attention devoted entirely to every word from the panel. She'd gained a bit of an obsession with Vacuo's politics since Blake had crash-coursed her on the topic. She'd tried to pass her interest off as just her being bored because of her being confined to bed, but Blake could tell that that first bit of insight on the world around her had meant a lot to Pearl, and now she was ravenous in her search for more.

Blake, on the other hand, had too much on her mind already to care about some strangers' opinions on things they didn't even fully understand. If she couldn't form a confident opinion on Sienna, how could they?

But that wasn't what distracted her. It was Ilia. _Ilia_ was always on her mind.

Like she'd promised, Sienna had contacted Corsac Albain to ask about Ilia, and a couple days later had relayed the information he'd found – which amounted to very little. Ilia had left the White Fang shortly after Blake. She'd simply disappeared overnight, without saying a word to anybody, and she hadn't been seen since.

It was easy to connect Blake's leaving with Ilia's. But another less obvious connection, one Blake had realized after asking Sienna a few questions, was that Ilia had disappeared around the same time Adam had returned and been turned away by Sienna.

Blake wanted to believe that was just a coincidence, but the evidence lined up too well. She wouldn't treat it as truth until she had proof, but – unless Sienna was lying – it seemed that Ilia was working with, or for, Adam.

As if things weren't difficult enough for her already.

"-could be juggling a herd of elephants and you wouldn't notice."

Pearl snapped her fingers in front of Blake's face, making her flinch and turn to look. "What?"

"I was talking to you, and you weren't listening," Pearl said crossly. "What's going on with you, Blake?"

"I'm sorry. I'm just tired," Blake said.

"You always say that," Pearl groaned. "I mean, I believe you, 'cause you do always look like you're tired-"

"Thanks."

"-but you've been acting weird ever since we got here. It's like you see ghosts everywhere." Pearl shook her head. "It's bad enough dealing with demons, now we gotta add ghosts to the mix?"

"I'm just…" Blake stopped herself, realizing she was about to repeat that excuse of being tired again. "I just have a lot on my mind. There are some… problems, I'm trying to figure out, and I can't tell you about them. For your safety."

"…Alright. As long as you don't turn into a mute every time I try to talk to you, we're good," Pearl said.

Blake sighed. It was true that Pearl didn't need the additional burden of Blake's personal problems right now, but she wished there was a way to protect her without keeping secrets from her.

"Hey, Blake," Pearl said quietly. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you, but I didn't know how to say it, and when to say it, so… I'm just gonna…" She clasped her hands on her lap and bowed her head. "I'm sorry for calling you a coward earlier."

"What?" Blake frowned. "You don't need to apologize. I didn't even remember that until now."

"Didn't you, really?" Pearl scowled at her.

"Okay, I didn't forget, but I didn't care," Blake said. "You'd just lost your boyfriend, Pearl. And you still haven't had enough time to heal. You shouldn't be worrying yourself over other people's feelings."

"Just because I'm hurt doesn't mean I get to treat you like crap," Pearl muttered. "I'd be in a much worse place if it weren't for you, Blake." She raised her head stubbornly. "If you really care about my feelings, you're gonna accept my apology, because if you don't, I'm gonna be very upset."

"Fine. You don't have to threaten me." Blake smirked. "I hereby accept your apology. Do you feel better now?"

Pearl nodded, but Blake could still see a hint of remorse in her eyes.

"I should have apologized right away, but I just didn't understand why you'd hide that you're a faunus. I guess I still don't fully understand," Pearl said. "But it's okay. You don't need to explain it to me. I get it now, that everyone has their own story, so even if I don't really _like_ what you do… You must have a good reason, and it'd be wrong for me to judge you." She shrugged. "Us faunus have a hard enough living _without_ us discriminating each other."

"That's… very mature of you, Pearl," Blake said. "You could teach a thing or two about tolerance to some people I've met… and punched in the face…"

"Don't start treating me like I'm some wise saint. It's Sienna who told me this stuff." Pearl gulped. "I _might_ have ranted a little about you when she came to the hospital that first morning. I was still angry with you. She put some sense in me right quick."

Blake pursed her lips, not knowing how to feel. It was like the universe was pulling out all the stops to change her mind about Sienna. Either that, or…

"She also said she wished you didn't feel like you had to hide who you are," Pearl said. "And then she paid me ten million Lien to tell you all this stuff. To advance her mindgames, _ooooh_!"

Pearl waved her fingers at Blake, then turned back to the TV with a little smile on her lips. Blake sighed, but she couldn't be upset at the girl. She was being paranoid about Sienna's every move, and even if she had their shared past to justify that, perhaps it was best if she cut back a little – for her own mental health, if nothing else.

* * *

Sienna was nervous, and it irritated her to no end.

When was the last time she'd been nervous? _Truly_ nervous? Even announcing her campaign to the public hadn't caused her such anxiousness. There was a pit in her stomach, and it felt like she could barely hold the air in her lungs.

She'd faced worse things before. _Done_ worse things before. So why did a goddamn _debate_ scare her so badly?

 _This is what your uncle was good at_ , a little voice spoke in the back of her head, trailed by the echoes of a shrill laughter. _If you can't do it as well as him, then what's the point, little one?_

Sienna grimaced. She started to rub her forehead, then stopped, realizing she'd be ruining the copious amount of make-up the studio's crew had put on her. Much as she hated it, she'd hate it even more if people didn't take her serious because of her appearance. Those were very vapid people, but they were voters, nonetheless.

_Should have brought your gun with you, little one. Quicker. Easier. And bloodier, always better._

"Oh, shut up," she grumbled, and glanced at her phone again. When was this stupid debate going to start?

As if responding to her fleeting patience, the dressing room's door opened, and a woman poked her head inside. "Ms. Khan, it's time to go live. If you'll come with me, please."

Sienna huffed. "About time. I was about to scream myself hoarse."

She followed the woman out of the room and down the hallway. "I'm v-very sorry for the delay, Ms. Khan," the assistant stuttered, looking back at Sienna with a tremble to her shoulders. "We've had some, uh, unforeseen issues getting the o-other guest, uh, _acclimated_ to the studio?"

"Oh? The councilman's being difficult?" Sienna chortled. "Why, somehow I'm not surprised."

The assistant smiled hesitantly, as if she didn't know whether she should echo Sienna's sentiments.

They reached the studio where the network's reporters normally did the nightly news. The desk had been taken away to give room to three chairs, two of them sitting opposite of each other, while the third was a little farther back between them. Cobalt was already sitting, still as a statue, but he still hadn't seen her.

The assistant stepped to the side and nodded for Sienna to step into the stage. Sienna started walking towards the chair opposite Cobalt, then stopped in her tracks and returned to the assistant.

"Sorry for being rude. You're just doing your job," Sienna said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you very much for the help."

The other woman smiled and bowed her head. Sienna nodded to her, then took her seat opposite Cobalt.

He shifted in his chair, and as his eyes rose to meet hers, everything about his face radiated the disgust he felt for her. " _Khan_ ," he said, as if just uttering the name caused him pain. "We finally meet. You look smaller in person."

"Well, you look…" Sienna paused, missing her usual wit. "You look as old as you always do."

He sneered and looked away. Sienna gripped the arms of her chair, thinking how satisfying it would feel to jump him and slap him across the face.

Thankfully, another arrival put her violent urges to rest, a lithe woman with green hair, wearing a reporter's attire and holding a stack of notecards in her hands. Most notably, the skin of her cheeks had an odd color and texture, almost like they were made of scales instead of flash.

"Ms. Khan." She offered a hand, and Sienna shook it eagerly. "Good to see you again. Do you remember me?"

Sienna smiled as she recognized the woman's voice. "Ms. Verid. You were at my campaign launch, weren't you?" she said. "I seem to recall your questions were rather _challenging_. Hopefully you'll have a little mercy this time?"

"I had a lot to prove, Ms. Khan." Verid chuckled. "And I'm sorry to inform you this won't be much different. But I'm sure you won't hold it against me."

"Not at all," Sienna said. "So, what's the story here? Did the network assign you to the job because you're a faunus? Maybe they felt pressured into that decision? Or were you the only one willing to step up to the challenge?"

"A little bit of everything, Ms. Khan." Verid turned and offered her hand to Cobalt. "Councilman."

He barely gave her a shake before taking his hand back and not so subtly wiping it on his leg. Verid shot Sienna a knowing look, then sat down and gestured at the camera crew.

"Everyone ready?" she asked, and after a quick nod from Sienna and Cobalt, she put on a smile and faced the cameras. "We can start the broadcast."

A ten-second countdown ensued, and at its end, a short tune. Verid straightened her shoulders as she addressed the cameras.

"Good evening, citizens of Vacuo. You've just tuned into the Vale News Network, and we've got a special broadcast for you tonight. I'm Meagan Verid, and with me I have Cyrius Cobalt, who has served in the High Council for four terms, and is campaigning for a fifth election…"

She gestured at the Councilman, who smiled and nodded to the cameras, his demeanor completely changed from seconds before.

"…and Sienna Khan, who is running against him in her first bid for office. You might know her for her past associations with the White Fang and her extensive work on faunus-human relations."

"A pleasure to be here," Sienna said.

"Do you have any first words before we get started with the debate?" Verid asked. "Ms. Khan?"

"I'd just like to thank the good councilman for taking some of his _precious_ time to discuss the future of our country with me," Sienna said, nodding graciously to her opponent.

"Likewise, I appreciate Ms. Khan taking time away from riling up her supporters so we can have an honest conversation," Cobalt replied. "I've been looking forward to such an occasion since she announced her candidacy."

Sienna stopped herself from scowling. _Oh, have you now?_

"I have a list of important topics for us to discuss tonight, but before we get to that, let's leave the room open for a couple of direct questions, if you have any prepared," Verid said.

"I have one," Cobalt said almost immediately, breaking a smile. "Ms. Khan, what makes you so sure you are qualified to be a member of the highest office in Vacuo? You have no experience in the realm of politics, and if you think your previous _occupation_ will help patch that issue, you are sorely mistaken."

Sienna took a moment to think before responding. She'd prepared herself to this and many other possible questions, so the answer was clear, but that did nothing to soothe her nerves.

"Well, Councilman…" she said slowly. "I think we all have to start somewhere, don't we?"

"True. Perhaps as the mayor of some small northern town," he said, barely containing his mirth. "That seems closer to your pedigree, yes?"

Sienna's eyes narrowed. "Maybe you're right. But you seem confused, Councilman – I'm not running for Suntide's council seat because it's easy. I'm not stupid, and neither am I filthy rich," she said. "I've lived all my life seeing the same faces rise to the highest station, giving the same old promises, only for no progress to ever be made. So I may be inexperienced, and I may be from the wrong background, but if I can do just _one_ good thing for my country and its people… If I can do just that, I will gladly face any challenge that stands in my path."

She smiled at Cobalt and saw the confidence drain from face, at the same time that the contempt in his eyes intensified. The cameras couldn't capture it, but Sienna saw it clear as day – he was crumbling.

The big, strong man was starting to realize he was nothing more than a cub – and he had just wandered into the lioness's den.

* * *

" _If we want to make actual progress as an independent nation, then we have to get out of other countries' pockets. We have thousands of Vacuan citizens not gaining a dime for their honest work, while we give free passes to foreign industries to come here and take over_ our _economy_ ," Sienna said. " _There's a lot to be gained from healthy,_ equal _business relationships with our allies. But as we are today, we're just one step above of a puppet state to them._ "

"What's a puppet state?" Pearl blurted out.

"Something we don't want Vacuo to be," Blake said simply.

"That's... not very helpful." Pearl frowned. "I guess it's implied in the name, though."

Blake nodded, uncomfortably focused on the debate. She was feeling that same shortness of breath that had set upon her when she'd watched Sienna's campaign launch speech. Nearly everything Sienna said, Blake agreed with, but it just felt so _wrong_.

She had to wonder how much Sienna meant of what she said, and if she really understood the extent of her words. Blake supposed she had to have done a lot of research before becoming a candidate, but it was weird to picture Sienna as a studied politician.

" _Even the studio we're in belongs to a foreign network!_ " Sienna said. " _I don't mean any offense with that, Ms. Verid, but I have to point it out. We're having a conversation that might shape the future government of Vacuo, and it's not even being held in a locally-owned network._ "

" _Yes... Err, that's... certainly a point,_ " Verid said, awkwardly shuffling her notes. " _Anything you'd like to say about that, Mr. Councilman?_ "

" _Before that, I'd like to point out that it was Mr. Cobalt's team that insisted the VNN host this debate_ ," Sienna noted. " _Please proceed._ "

Pearl cheered and clapped in delight.

"Blake, how can you _not_ like her?" she exclaimed. "Look at his face. He looks like he wants to strangle her!"

 _Yes, he does_. "Sienna has charisma, I'll give her that. That's good for her," Blake said. "As for the people around her, maybe not so much."

"You're such a killjoy. If you were a politician, you'd bore everyone to death," Pearl said. "I guess you'd be doing a good job, then."

" _Let's move on to our next topic: racial inequality._ "

" _Oh, I have a lot to say about that one!_ "

Blake's Scroll buzzed next to her on the bed. Still listening to the TV, she unlocked the phone to find a message sent by an unknown number.

_You want to find your friend? Kuehn Street, 47. Sixth floor, room 67._

Blake jumped to her feet, staring at the phone like it was possessed.

_Who is this?_

A few seconds later, a reply came. _What are you waiting for? Do you want to find her or not?_

Blake cast a look back at Pearl, who was still absorbed by the debate, then dialed the number and exited the room.

She paced the hallway for a minute, waiting for the mystery person to answer, before giving up. As her shock faded, she read the messages again and recalled every person who had her number. Beacon. The Hunt. And more recently, Sun.

Sun? No, he didn't know about Ilia. And he wasn't the type to try and trick her like this.

_If you're slow, you might miss her. I'd get there fast if I were you._

Blake cursed under her breath and went back into the room.

"Pearl, are you okay being by yourself for a while?" she asked, trying to stay composed even if every bone in her body was telling her to run out of the house immediately.

"What? Yeah, sure – but why, where are you going?" Pearl asked.

"Something came up. I don't know when I'll be back," Blake said. "Just stay here!"

She ran out of the room without another word, hoping she wasn't making a huge mistake.

* * *

"And now for our last and most important topic: Grimm. How do we protect our home from this new threat, a kind of threat mankind has never faced before?" Verid said, and gestured at Sienna and Cobalt. "I give the floor to you."

Sienna nodded to Cobalt, allowing him the opportunity to speak first.

"The Grimm. I find this a very curious topic, as at first they sound like such a frightening beasts, but when you look at the issue more closely, the solution becomes obvious," Cobalt said. "The Grimm are nothing more than animals – very dangerous animals – and they should be treated as such. Exterminating them is the only acceptable course of action."

"But how do we get to that point, Mr. Councilman?" Verid asked.

"We're not that far off. Beacon has proven to be more than capable of dealing with the majority of Grimm Surges in our territory," he answered. "And of course, we have been building our own defenses as well. The Department of Defense Against Grimm has made it its first priority to acquire the weapons needed to vanquish the aberrations. It's only a matter of time until we are fully ready to repel any and all Grimm from our land."

He smiled, as if nothing gave him more pleasure than hearing himself speak, then gestured at Sienna.

"Honestly?" Sienna rubbed her nose. "That was some goofy bullshit, Councilman."

Cobalt's face went completely red, while Verid quickly raised her notes to cover her mouth, though a stifled laugh still escaped her lips.

"You just proved my earlier point," Sienna said. "Those weapons we're _acquiring_ to kill Grimm with, they're all SDC inventory. Atlesian products. But that's not all – they outsource the building of those weapons to Vacuo. We're giving the SDC money for weapons that are being produced _within our borders_. How absurd is that?"

"That is a gross oversimplification," Cobalt grunted.

"And that's not all! We don't even have the personnel to wield those weapons. So we're paying millions of Lien for firearms we _aren't even using_ ," Sienna said. "Meanwhile, we're depending on Beacon to protect our citizens, but they have the whole world to protect. I welcome their help – this isn't a matter of pride – but we can't rely entirely on it!"

"Well, what do you propose we do about the damn beasts, then?" Cobalt all but shouted. "You seem keen on dismantling everything we've build since the founding of Vacuo, but after that? Hah!"

"Oh, Councilman. It's _obvious_. We already have the solution." Sienna smiled. "When Cinder Fall opened the door to the creatures of Grimm one year ago, was it Beacon who saved Vacuo from ruin? No. It was the White Fang. When our own government couldn't respond to the threat, the faunus of the White Fang did. And they didn't stop there. To this day, they're fighting for the good of their country."

"The White Fang? The bunch of terrorists, _White Fang_?" Cobalt sneered. "They've been terrorizing Vacuo for decades, and you expect us to not only forgive them, but to trust them to protect our good people? _Pah_!"

"Calling the White Fang a bunch of terrorists, now _that_ , is a gross oversimplification," Sienna said. "The White Fang was born out of the need of a home for the marginalized faunus of Vacuo, the people our system not only rejected, but sought to eliminate."

"And - _if that is true_ – does that justify the damage they've caused? The lives they've taken?" Cobalt asked. "Do I need to remind you that it was Adam Taurus, a member of the White Fang, who helped Cinder Fall open that accursed portal a year back?"

"Taurus is an example of what will keep happening if we do not reconcile the divides between the faunus and humans of Vacuo," Sienna said. "I am not saying that we should forgive the White Fang immediately. But by entrusting them with defending our country, by giving them purpose, they may be able to earn forgiveness. And then, if all is right, there might be no need for a White Fang anymore."

Sienna saw a vein bulging on Cobalt's forehead. She looked at Verid and noticed she was subtly backing away from the councilman, an apprehensive look on her face.

"The White Fang?!" Cobalt shouted suddenly. "The White Fang is nothing more than a pack of bloodthirsty animals! You're saying they're going to defend Vacuo from evil? That's absurd – no, it's downright insane! Though I suppose nothing less should be expected of-"

"Watch how you speak," Sienna interrupted sharply. "Good faunus have laid down their lives to protect our people, while you've done nothing but hide behind your Atlesian tin soldiers. As far as I'm concerned, what's really absurd is that you haven't been-"

"Alright!" Verid raised a hand. "This is a very sensitive topic. You've both made your points. Let's take a breather."

Sienna pursed her lips and put her hands on her lap, ignoring Cobalt's deadly glare. If Verid hadn't interrupted her right then and there, she would have said something she'd have regretted very much. Not because she didn't mean it, but because of the public backlash. It would have most certainly been enough to tank her campaign.

Of course, Cobalt had spewed things of the same level throughout the conversation, and multiple times at that. But he would face no repercussion, and that made Sienna's blood boil.

"I'm afraid our time's coming to a close, Ms. Khan, Mr. Councilman," Verid said, looking a little wound-up herself. "If you have any closing words, we would be glad to hear them."

Cobalt turned to the cameras. "Don't elect this madwoman."

Sienna clenched her fists, then took a deep breath in and out.

"If I don't get elected, and you do, Mr. Councilman, I hope that you'll take at least a little of what I've said to heart," she said calmly. "And if I do win, I hope to count on your support regardless. I don't want to make enemies. That's not what Vacuo needs right now."

She smiled at him, and for once kept it free of the hostility she reserved for his type.

"That's all, then. We've come to the end of our debate," Verid said. "Thank you for your time, you have been wonderful guests. And thank you for tuning in. We'll be back shortly with our panel of commentators."

As soon as the cameras were off, Cobalt got up and stormed out of the studio. Sienna kept her cool, though she couldn't help but cheer a little inside that she'd gotten such a reaction out of him.

"What a detestable asshole," Verid said, turning to her. "I thought he was going to have a meltdown, and you didn't even go that hard on him."

"Well, it's something my uncle used to tell me – _kill them with kindness_." Sienna shrugged. "Thank you for the save, by the way."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Verid shuffled her notes, then nodded to her and walked away.

Sienna stood up, releasing a little sigh of relief, then made her way out of the studio. The debate hadn't gone so bad, all things considered. It would take a very biased person to say she hadn't come out on top. Of course, today's narrative would be mostly dictated by the other prominent voices of Vacuo's media, but she was confident she had impressed the right persons.

As she exited the studio, she almost bumped into Fennec, who looked uncharacteristically high-strung. "Sienna," he said, bowing his head a little. "You did excellently. This was a momentous night for your campaign."

"Is that so? And I thought I was the dramatic one between the two of us," Sienna said. "But thank you. Your words mean a lot, friend. I have to admit, I wasn't nearly as confident as I made myself appear." She smiled. "It was thanks to your help in getting me prepared that I pulled through, Fennec."

"I… am only doing my obligation, my lady," Fennec said. "That was a… nice touch, at the end. I cannot recall if we planned that."

"No, we didn't. But it was in the spirit of the thing all along, wouldn't you say?" Sienna said. "Also, _my lady_? That's not as bad as High Leader, I'll give you that much, but surely you can find something else to call me. Such as my name. Or _Her Beauteousness_."

She gestured grandly at herself. Fennec looked away, his face twitching.

"Do you wish to eat out tonight, Sienna?" he asked, not meeting her eyes.

 _Is he trying to…?_ "Not tonight. I'm so tired, I just want to go home and do nothing." She put a hand on her hip and blinked at him. "But we can try tomorrow, if you're still up for it?"

"Yes. Tomorrow." Fennec nodded. "Shall we be going, Sienna?"

He turned and started walking towards the elevators, and Sienna saw his hands shaking behind his back. Sienna had never thought of Fennec as anything more than a close friend and a confidant, but she had to admit he looked rather adorable right now. He reminded her of the boys she'd fooled around with when she was young, all nervous wrecks trying to keep their cool while never noticing that she was just as jittery as them.

 _Now is really not the time to be contemplating these things_. She shook her head. _But when have you ever followed the rules?_

She caught up to him and called the elevator before he could, brushing her hand against his as she pressed the button. "Oops. My bad. And you were just being a gentleman," she said. "I assume you'll continue to be one and drive me home?"

"Yes…" Fennec raised an eyebrow at her. "As I've done several times."

"Of course, because you're an excellent driver," Sienna said cheerily. "I always look forward to riding with you."

The elevator doors opened. Fennec gave her a hesitant look, then gestured for her to enter first. Sienna stepped past him, barely containing her laughter. She'd forgotten how fun this was.

* * *

Sienna pressed her back to the front door, smiling as she listened to Fennec driving away. God, she really was turning into a schoolgirl again, wasn't she? Not that she had really been a schoolgirl ever, but…

This day was too good to be ruined by sour thoughts.

"Is that you, Blake?" Pearl called from upstairs.

"It's Sienna!" she shouted back. "I'm back from my ass-kicking session. I mean, _butt_ -kicking-"

"I'm fifteen!"

Pearl came hopping down the stairs, an annoyed but amused look on her face. She reached the last step and jumped to the floor, and winced a bit as she landed.

Sienna's smile dissolved at once. "What do you think you're doing hopping around like a monkey?" she asked angrily, walking over to the girl. "You could reopen your wounds, you little punk! Is that what you want?"

" _No_." Pearl flinched. "I'm fine. Just got a little excited is all."

"Yeah? Well hopefully you'll still be just as _excited_ when you're bleeding out on my floor."

Pearl shrank and took a step back, her eyes wavering, and reality hit Sienna like a brick. The girl had been so strong throughout her recovery, Sienna had forgotten that she was just that – a girl, young and lost and still hurting from what had been done to her.

"I'm sorry," Sienna said. "I overreacted. You just scared me a bit. Be more mindful in the future, yeah?"

Pearl was silent for a moment before she threw her a heated glare. "You always bark at people when you get scared?"

"Actually, yes." Sienna smiled bitterly. "It's a flaw of mine. One I should work on correcting."

"You should!" Pearl agreed, her usual moxie making a return. "I'll accept food as recompense. _Immediately._ "

"I'm afraid you'll have to wait. We're all out of everything. Fennec went to refill and grab us something to eat," Sienna said. "He'll be back in an hour."

"Well he better come _running_ , or else I'm gonna start eating his flowers." Pearl turned around. "I'm going back up to my room. You gonna yell at me some more, or is that okay?"

Sienna sighed and nodded. She would have been angry, if she didn't know Pearl was just giving her a hard time as payback for her yelling. It was only fair.

"Did Blake go somewhere?" Sienna asked.

"Yeah, she didn't say where, only that it was urgent." Pearl stopped in the middle of the stairs to look back at her. "You know anything about that?"

"No, I don't think so," Sienna said. "Hopefully it's nothing dangerous."

Pearl snorted. "Yeah, _sure_. And I hope I grow up to become an unicorn faunus."

* * *

Contrary to what Blake had been expecting, the place her mystery helper led her to was not some desert street, nor some decrepit house or building. The address was actually a fairly busy street in downtown Suntide, and the building was a hotel. It wasn't a five-stars establishment by any means, but it wasn't shabby either.

It also didn't seem like the kind of place Ilia, as a runaway, would be staying in. But Blake had come this far already, so what harm was there in going the last stretch to the end of the trail? There was the likely possibility of said end holding a trap for her, yes, but she'd never gotten anywhere in life by not taking risks.

She walked inside the hotel, keeping a steady pace as she headed directly for the stairs at the other end of the lobby. She wasn't going to take any chances talking to the hotel staff, but she knew bolting out of their sight as fast as possible was likely to have the opposite effect than expected.

Blake got to the door and went inside, then started going up the stairs with measured steps. She took out her blade and held it low at her side, expecting at any moment for doors to slam open above and below her and White Fang grunts to pour into the stairway to surround her – if it was them that were behind this.

She reached the sixth floor and carefully opened the door, peaking out into the hallway before stepping out. A quick look at the nearest doors and she knew to go left. Seconds later, she was standing before room 67, spinning her blade restlessly in her hand.

 _Curiosity killed the cat_. There were several reasons Blake disliked the saying, chiefly among them that she feared that one day, she would prove it true.

Casting aside her fear, Blake thrust her blade at the door, repeating the method she'd used to open Sienna's secret room. She felt a little guiltier considering this was the hotel's property, but she wasn't going to let that stop her. Not if Ilia was on the other side of the door.

She yanked her blade back, and splinters went flying everywhere. A kick to the door finally opened it. Blake jumped back, one arm raised in front of her face to block an attack.

An attack that never came.

She walked inside the room and looked around. It didn't look like anyone was occupying it, not legitimately, at least. There was no luggage to be seen, but the bed covers were slightly off, just enough that Blake wouldn't have noticed if she hadn't been looking for something wrong.

She opened the wardrobe, only to find towels and nothing hidden by them. The drawers on the nightstand were empty too. She walked to the windows and opened them, then looked below. Was Ilia getting into the room the same way she'd sneaked into the hospital before, by climbing the outside? Just the thought of that make her stomach turn. Even she didn't have the courage to do something that dangerous.

She stepped back and started to close the windows, when something caught her eyes. There was a leather bag sitting on the windowsill, only the corner of it visible past the window's frame. Blake stuck her arm out and grabbed it, then opened it and turned it over above the bed.

A journal fell out, followed by two white-and-red masks. Blake grabbed one of the masks and turned it over in her hands, a feeling of dread washing over her. There was no mistaking it, these were White Fang masks. And if Ilia had them in her possession…

She grabbed the journal and opened it. From the very first page, there were only scribblings - words that seemed to have been written in a hurry, or in great anger. There were entire sections that had been crossed out in broad strokes, and pages that had been ripped out.

Blake turned to the last written page. The writing was clearer there, as if Ilia hadn't been as angry. One thing stood out among the sea of scribbles. One name. Marcus Steel.

Blake put the journal down, feeling short for breath. Was this a _hit list_?

"Ilia, what are you doing…?" she muttered.

She jumped when her Scroll buzzed. In a flash, she had in her hands, her fingers ready to unleash a barrage of questions and threats at the mystery person – before she realized it was another number altogether that had messaged her.

_You must get back to the house this instant Belladonna._

_Wherever you are, you must leave NOW._

_Sienna's life is at risk._

Blake flinched. Before she could type a response, another message came.

_This is Fennec Albain._

_GO NOW._

_Miss Pearl is in danger too._

_GO._

* * *

Sienna gave a knock on Pearl's door before entering. Pearl was under her blankets again, only her head and shoulders out in the open so she could watch the screen in front of her. Sienna gave a curious glance to the TV, wondering how one person could stand to watch so much uninterrupted news without going a little insane.

"Is it okay if I talk to you, or are we still fighting?" she asked.

Pearl looked at her weirdly. "What are you, my mom?" She rolled her eyes. "We're cool. I was just… you know, defending myself, before. I'm not angry with you."

"Yeah, but I made you react that way, and I should know better," Sienna said. "You want me to be honest with you, kid? I lived half my life seeing people get hurt. It was horrible. But once you've lived around that kinda stuff long enough, you become desensitized to it. And then you leave, and you realize…" She paused. "For a moment there, I thought I was being pulled back into the horror, and I guess I took it out on you. Sorry."

"It's okay. I get what you're saying," Pearl said. "I don't know what the White Fang was like, but I've seen shit too." Her eyes darkened. "Very recently, actually."

"Sorry. I didn't mean to dig that back up," Sienna said. "You gonna be okay, kid?"

Pearl snickered. "I told Blake you were a big softie, and she said I was wrong. As always, I'm an excellent judge of character."

"Indeed you are."

Sienna looked at the TV again, her interest peaking when she saw a live broadcast of a street full of protesters.

"How have things been for the half-second since I disconnected from the world?" she asked.

"A lot of people liked you in the debate. Like, _a lot_ a lot of people," Pearl said. "You're getting support from all kinds of people. Faunus, humans, progressives, conservatives…" She smirked. "I'm no analyst, but it's looking like you're gonna win by a landslide."

"That's great. But I wouldn't trust public perception to stay that way, and there's still three weeks until election day," Sienna said. "That, and never underestimate the ability of bigoted people to band together when they think they're being threatened – and if there's one thing Cobalt is _honestly_ good at, it's harvesting that hateful energy for his own purposes."

"Right…" Pearl muttered. "They've been showing some people, the ones that aren't happy with you… It's kinda scary." She sank a little on the bed, as if she hoped to disappear into the blankets. "People have been wondering where I am. And, uh, they've been saying some crazy stuff about me being kidnapped or… or that I was an actress…"

"Well, they can keep saying that all they want. Anyone that believes their crap isn't worth worrying about."

Pearl nodded, but she didn't seem so comforted by Sienna's words.

"Do you think I'm ever gonna be able to go out there again?" she mumbled. "Because I'm starting to think this stuff is gonna follow me for the rest of my life… Which might not be very long after all."

"Everything will turn out okay for you, Pearl," Sienna said. "I'll make sure of that."

As soon as that last word left her lips, an explosive noise came from outside the house, bringing a familiar ringing to Sienna's ears. Pearl screamed and threw herself back on the bed, holding her pillow in front of her.

The noise repeated itself six times – or was it eight? – or twelve? Mingled with them were screams, of surprise, anger – and agony, most of all agony.

 _Gunshots_.

"Stay in your room!" Sienna shouted to Pearl. "Find somewhere to hide and don't come out until I tell you to!"

She ran out of the room and bolted down the stairs. She reached the first floor just as the front door slammed open, and a sandy-haired man came storming in with a shotgun in his hands. He was broad as a bear, but unmistakably human – if only for the hatred that shone in his eyes as he saw her pause in front of him.

He raised his gun, destroying the stairs behind Sienna as she threw herself to the side. She slammed against a wall and kicked off it, barely keeping her balance as she made a run for her office. The intruder shot again, and the blast grazed her back as she tackled the door open.

Fire spread through her body, but the adrenaline fought the excruciating pain off and gave her the strength to slam the door behind her, then knock over a bookshelf in front of it. She dove behind her desk as a shotgun blast tore through the door, spraying the wall above and behind her.

"Shit, shit, shit…" Sienna palmed the underside of the desk, the color draining from her face. "Where the fuck's the goddamn gun?!"

Another blast sprayed the wall. Sienna stopped, the sound of the gun being reloaded echoing in the ear as if it was just beside her. Screaming furiously, she rose and vaulted over the desk, then threw herself through the tattered door.

Pain spiked through her shoulder as she slammed it against the man's chest, launching him backwards, but not hard enough to knock him off his feet. She swung at his face with one hand, while she grabbed the shotgun with the other. Before she could snatch the gun from him, the man regained his bearings and yanked back, and for a second they were locked in a standstill before his strength inevitably overpowered hers.

He swung the gun around, smashing the side of her head with it. Sienna spun around and stumbled away, black spots dotting her vision as her mouth filled with a metallic taste. The sound of the reloading gun behind her deafened everything else.

A new burst of strength coursed through her, and she sprinted towards the front door – and then the next blast finally came, catching her left leg and sending her crashing towards the floor.

* * *

"Sienna?"

Pearl hopped down the steps, halting in the middle of the stairs when she saw Sienna fall face-first on the floor. The older woman twitched for a moment before her body went still. Blood pooled around her leg and torso.

The intruder appeared before her, standing over Sienna. With a foot, he turned her around, then cocked his gun and aimed at her chest.

"No!" Pearl covered her mouth with her hands and stumbled back. Her foot caught on a step, and she fell down, gasping as her back hit the stairs and the air was knocked out of her lungs.

The man looked up at her, and she saw his eyes widen in surprise, and then panic.

She froze. He froze.

And then he started to raise his shotgun towards her.

The front door swung open, and Fennec ran inside, aiming a pistol at the intruder's head.

"Take your gun off the girl-"

The intruder turned around and blasted Fennec point-blank.

" _NO_!" Pearl screamed.

Fennec's body hit the floor with a dull _thud_. The intruder stared at it, his shoulders rising and falling as if he was having trouble breathing.

After what felt like an eternity, he turned again, and pointed his gun at her.

"Wrong place, kid," he said hoarsely.

Like time had slowed down, Pearl saw his finger pressing on the trigger – and then the gun falling from his grasp as a blade pierced through his right arm.

* * *

Blake yanked on her ribbon, pulling the man out of the house. The fabric detached from the blade, leaving it buried in the intruder's flesh, but the momentum still sent him barreling through the open doorway and down the steps until he hit the ground outside.

She came at him, her foot flying towards his skull, but through all the pain he raised his damaged arm and grabbed her ankle. Suddenly she was the one on the ground, and he was on top of her, taking hold of her head and slamming it against the asphalt.

" _Gggah_!" Blake grabbed his wrists and tried to wrench his hands off her head, but it was like pushing against a wall. He pulled her head up and brought it down again, and again, and again, each impact draining more of her Aura and strength.

 _Can't overpower him._ She let go of his wrists and grit her teeth. _With the next blow!_

He slammed her head down again, but this time was met with no feedback, as her body dissolved into shadows. His fingers hit the asphalt, and he screamed in pain.

Behind him, Blake balled her fingers into a fist and hammered it against the back of his neck. He went stiff for a second, then fell limp.

Blake stepped back, struggling to breathe. She looked around at the bodies scattered throughout the front of the house and felt her throat tighten. If she hadn't left, this wouldn't have happened.

These people wouldn't be dead.

Trembling, she walked up the steps to the porch and entered the house. She saw Fennec and looked away – then saw Sienna lying on the floor, with Pearl sitting on the stairs behind her, silent as tears streamed down her face.

"Oh thank God," Blake croaked, and stumbled towards Pearl, stepping over Sienna. "You're okay. I'm here. I'm sorry."

She kneeled before Pearl and pressed her forehead against the girl's.

"I'm sorry."


	7. From and Towards

Blake couldn't sleep. She knew she ought to, that taking a quick rest would harm no one… but she couldn't. The sun had come up hours ago, and Pearl had fallen asleep against her shoulder even earlier than that, but her body was still full of nervous energy. Even worse was the guilt and confusion that weighed on her mind.

Something was happening around her, with Sienna, the Albains, Cobalt, Ilia, Pearl… There were so many moving pieces, and she didn't know which were the players and which were just pawns. She needed to pull down that curtain and see the truth, before everything fell apart for good.

That was what she'd been doing since this all started, just trying to keep things together. And what good had that brought anyone?

Ringing footsteps woke her from her thoughts. Blake looked up and saw Corsac Albain walking down the hospital hallway towards her. His face which, much like his brother's, seemed always calculatingly dispassionate, was now twisted into a tempestuous scowl.

Blake considered not waking up Pearl, as she probably didn't need to hear what Corsac had to say, but figured that it would be useless in the end. She'd likely be waked from her sleep anyway if Corsac's face was any indication.

Blake gave Pearl a little shake, and the girl immediately opened her eyes and looked around herself with a panicked expression on her face. When she realized where she was, a tiny gasp escaped from her lips, and she settled back on the bench – though her eyes were still wide, and Blake could feel her trembling beside her.

"Is she okay?" Pearl asked before Corsac had even stopped in front of them, a note of fear in her voice.

"The surgery was a success," Corsac said tersely, his hands opening and closing at his sides. "Barring any complications, Sienna will survive." His eyes narrowed. "At least as far as her injuries are concerned, that is."

"Is she awake? Can she talk?" Pearl leaned forward on the bench. "I wanna see her. Can we do that?"

Corsac glanced at Blake, and his scowl worsened, somehow. "She's still under the effect of the anesthetics. You can visit her room, but she won't be awake for a while."

Pearl nodded. She bowed her head, clasping her hands on her lap. "I'm s-sorry about your brother, Mr. Albain…"

For a moment, Corsac's scowl was broken by a look of profound sorrow – before his anger returned anew.

"We both know who's behind all this," he said, glaring at Blake.

"We _don't_ ," Blake said, trying to keep firm as she met his eyes. "It could be Cobalt. And it just as likely could be someone else. The attack could have been planned way before the debate and they just abused the timing to throw us off. If we jump to conclusions-"

"You're defending that monster? Have some _dignity_ ," Corsac spat. "The truth is clear. Cobalt and his lackeys will finally pay for their crimes."

"Corsac." Blake stood up. "What are you going to do?"

"I came here to issue you a warning, Belladonna. Stay out of the White Fang's way," Corsac said. "There will be blood on the streets. You had better be careful yours does not get mingled in it."

He gave her a lasting look, then walked away. Blake stared at his back, wanting to stop him from leaving, but what use would that be? Corsac's reach was farther than himself, and at this point, she doubted his followers needed his word to carry out his will.

"Isn't he in charge of the White Fang?" Pearl muttered.

"Yes." Blake said back down and covered her head with her hands. "Yes, he is."

"Well… Crap. People are gonna die, aren't they?" Pearl turned to Blake. "What are you gonna do about it?"

"I don't know." Blake sighed in frustration. "For now, I'm going to stay here with you, making sure that was the last time you got hurt. Okay?"

"It's not me I'm worried about…" Pearl said, swallowing dry. "I feel bad for Corsac. He just lost his brother, and it's all because…" She paused, her eyes watering. "Fennec died because he tried to protect me. If it hadn't been for me…"

"We don't know what would have happened. For all we know, you being there saved Sienna, at least," Blake said, and put a hand on Pearl's shoulder. "You can't blame yourself."

"I know…" Pearl wiped her eyes. "Just feels like everyone keeps dying around me. Maybe you should leave before it gets to your turn."

"I'm not going anywhere," Blake said. "I'll fix all of this."

Why did she keep making promises she knew she couldn't keep? Hadn't she learned yet that there was a price to breaking her word?

"Do you want to go see Sienna now?" she asked.

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Pearl said. "I hope she's okay…"

"Yeah." Blake helped Pearl up and rubbed her shoulder. "I hope so too."

* * *

As she looked through the window of Sienna's room, Blake realized she had been seeing the former High Leader in many different lights recently, some that would have been inconceivable to her just a couple months ago. She would have never thought of Sienna as a compassionate, or selfless, or, God forbid, open-minded person.

She _had_ imagined a broken Sienna a few times, and though she'd felt guilty about it afterwards, it had been a comforting image. In reality, seeing Sienna like this was anything but comforting. Sienna was by no means untouchable, especially compared to some people Blake had met in recent years, but she was still Sienna.

Something was wrong in the world if Sienna Khan was lying broken in a hospital bed.

Blake was so unsettled she couldn't even bring herself to go inside the room. Pearl had gone in without a second's hesitation, and she'd been sitting beside the bed since then, eagerly waiting for a sign of life from Sienna.

Blake was glad Pearl had found Sienna. It was a strange thought, but Pearl needed someone she could always count on, and Sienna seemed to fit that bill much better than her.

_Now if you could just do something useful instead of wallowing in your self-loathing for once…_

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Blake looked to the side, and her mood brightened for a second before it took a steep dive again. Sun stopped a few steps from her, raising a hand in a wave that seemed both hopeful and apprehensive.

"Permission to step into slapping range?"

Blake sighed. She didn't have the energy to turn him away. Besides, what was the point if he was going to show up again later anyway? "Hi, Sun."

Sun grinned at her and walked over to her side. His face morphed into a wince as he gazed inside the room. "She gonna be okay?"

"As okay as someone can be after getting shot in the leg with a shotgun," Blake said.

"Right…" Sun frowned. "Never thought I'd see something like this happening in my lifetime. Then again, I also never thought I'd see real-life monsters dropping out of the sky, so… Yeah, the world's been going crazy lately."

Blake looked from him to Sienna. "Did you know her somehow?"

"What? No. Never seen her in person before today," Sun said. "But of course I knew _about_ her. I'm a faunus _and_ a policeman, believe me, I've heard some stuff about her." He looked into the room again, his face skeptical. "I never liked the White Fang, you know. Seemed like they always did more harm than good. But I think I'm coming around to her in particular…"

Blake wondered how popular that sentiment was recently. If public perception of Sienna had already been shifting to the better due to her campaign work, her popularity must be skyrocketing after the attack. It was easy to sympathize with someone you disliked once you saw that they were just as vulnerable as you.

"What about you?" Sun asked. "Have you changed your mind about her?"

Blake gave him a sharp look. "Are you here to interrogate me, Sun? Because if so, you're wasting your time. I've already talked to your _wonderful_ boss," she said. "Unless you think I'm lying?"

"Well, no, I don't think you're lying, but I know for sure you're not telling the full story. I've covered stuff up for you before, remember?" Sun said. "You said you were staying at Sienna's place to protect Pearl, but I know there's more to that story. I mean, there has to be, what with you being a White Fang runaway and all that."

Blake's heart skipped a beat. Eyes wide, she spun to face Sun, one hand rising to grab him by the collar – but he had wisely hopped away from her, his tail swinging wildly behind his back.

"I'm gonna take as a confirmation," he said. "Sorry, I was gonna let you tell me at your own time, but things are getting a _little crazy_ , if you haven't noticed, so…"

"How did you know? Did someone tell you?" Blake hissed.

"Blake, I figured it out. I'm a detective, remember? A rookie detective, yeah, but who cares about hierarchy?" Sun grinned. "Besides… A bow? Not that much of a disguise if you look closely. It's a step above glasses, I'll give you that, but- I'm just gonna stop talking before you slap the life out of me."

"Smart decision," Blake said through gritted teeth. "Have you told anyone?"

"What kinda jerk do you take me for, Blake? No, I haven't told anyone," Sun said. "You're being a little paranoid right now."

Blake turned away and leaned on the window, scowling. How else was she supposed to react to that bombshell?

"Look, Blake, I don't care if you were with the White Fang. It's none of my business. And I know you're a good person," Sun said quietly, returning to her side. "But if you know stuff that can help us figure out this mess – and by us, I mean _me and you_ – then I want you to tell me. I wanna do good for my people…" He put a hand on her shoulder. "…and I know you wanna do the same."

Blake sighed. Of all the cops that could have made their life mission to pester her, it had to have been Sun. She didn't know if she was lucky or unlucky – though she had to admit, she was leaning towards the former.

"I've got a… complicated relationship with Sienna," she said reluctantly. "I don't think it would help us any if I explained it to you in full. But I know her well, or at least I think I do."

"Do you think she could be behind all this?" Sun asked. "I know it sounds crazy, but…"

"When it comes to Sienna, nothing's too crazy," Blake said. "I don't know. I'll be the first to suggest she's playing mindgames, but this time… She'd have to be one hell of an actress. And would she sacrifice a leg to get herself into office?"

"She lost her advisor too," Sun noted. "Were they close?"

"Yeah, but I wouldn't give much credit to that."

Would Sienna risk Pearl's life, though? It seemed like an easy yes, what with her having her uncle killed, but Pearl was different. She wasn't exactly part of Sienna's life that way.

"What about the guy who did this to her? You know anything about him?" Sun asked.

"Not a clue," Blake said. "Haven't you got anything out of him?"

"He's a Cleanser," Sun said gravely. "Saw the mark on his shoulder myself. Course, barely anyone else in the precinct knows, and outside? Not a word about it." His eyes narrowed. "Chief's policy."

Blake grimaced. "I can't say I'm surprised. Anything else on him?"

"Nope. We've had him in interrogation for almost twelve hours now, and he hasn't said a word. Dude's a wall," Sun said. "We're working on identifying him, but it's been a difficult process. _Some_ people don't want us looking too deep into that stuff…"

"And Cobalt?" Blake said.

"Well he's the obvious culprit, but he's denied any involvement, and since we don't have any real connection between him and the incident, we can't keep him for questioning," Sun said. "But he _is_ getting a whole squad to protect him in his house, so lucky him!"

"That's good, actually," Blake said, remembering Corsac's warning. "He's not gonna wanna go anywhere without protection."

"What about the woman that got Marcus and his buddies? Is she a factor here?"

Blake grimaced. She had little problem filling Sun in on most things at this point, but did she trust him enough to tell him about Ilia? She wasn't even sure it mattered to the case…

But of course it mattered. And Sun trusted her.

"Her name's Ilia. Ilia Amitola," she said, struggling to find her voice. "We're… We used to be friends. I'm not so sure anymore."

"Oh. That's news," Sun said. "What's her deal, then? Is she a free agent or…?"

"I wish I knew, Sun. I wish I knew," Blake said. "The only thing I know is that she is mad as hell, and that's news _to me_."

"Well, I'll look her up, see if I can find out anything useful," Sun said. "If that's okay with you?"

"…Yeah. Please fill me in when you're done."

Sun nodded. He looked at her and frowned.

"When's the last time you ate something?" he asked.

Blake glared at him. "Sun, if you're trying to trick me into having lunch with you again…"

"It's not like that!" Sun waved his hands innocently. "You just look a little pale, you know. And your eyes are a little, eh… Maybe you should take a nap."

"I think I can take care of myself, Sun, thank you very much," Blake said.

"I never said you can't!" Sun sighed. "I'm just a little concerned is all. Is that so wrong?"

Blake shook her head at him. No, it wasn't wrong at all. It was actually very sweet of him. But she wasn't going to tell him that.

"And he's _not_ your boyfriend?"

Blake spun around and saw Pearl looking at them from the doorway, a knowing smile on her lips.

"And you're a cop?" Pearl scratched her chin. "Wow, Blake, didn't know you were into that."

"I am _not_ into…" Blake pursed her lips and bowed her head, hoping she was just imagining the burning on her face. "This is Sun. He's been helping me with… investigating stuff."

"Yeah, I get it. We all need a little investigating from time to time," Pearl said sagely.

Blake groaned. "Sun. This is Pearl. You know about her already."

"Hi!" Sun waved. "I see you like getting on her nerves too. We should make a club or something."

"Yeah, man, it's the best, isn't it?"

_Oh God there are two of them._

"I can't stay around much longer, unfortunately. The precinct's going crazy, and the chief's asking me where I am," Sun said. "If you need anything, Blake, just give me a call. It was nice meeting you, Pearl!"

He waved at them and walked away. Before he could get far, Blake caught up to him and grabbed his wrist, stopping him.

"Sun, there's one more thing," she said. "Corsac Albain's furious about his brother's death, and he's got the whole White Fang at his beck and call. He's going to try something dangerous, and I'll try to stop it before it happens, but just in case… Be careful."

"You think he's gonna try to grab his brother's murderer from the police." Sun frowned. "Yeah, I can see that happening. But with or without the White Fang, I don't think he can actually manage it, not with the way things are right now in the HQ."

"Regardless. Keep an eye out for trouble." Blake bit her lip. "And… thanks for stopping by."

Sun raised a hand to his forehead to tip an imaginary hat. "'Twas my pleasure, partner."

He walked away, and Blake went back to Pearl. Relieved that she could finally enjoy some silence for more than a couple seconds, she sat down on a bench and leaned her head back against the wall.

"Sun seems like a nice guy," Pearl said. "Too bad he's not your type."

"What would you know about my type, Pearl?" Blake asked tiredly.

Pearl blinked. "Nothing. I'm just a little girl, really."

She looked back into Sienna's room, and the cheer drained from her face. Her eyes wavered with guilt, and she bowed her head a little.

"I'll… uh, I'm gonna go back inside and keep Sienna company," she muttered. "You?"

"I'm going to take a nap," Blake said. "And probably grab a snack before."

"Okay. I'll wake you up when she does."

* * *

Blake woke up to the buzzing of her Scroll. She sat up on the bench outside of Sienna's room, already wide awake. She looked at her Scroll and saw it was two in the afternoon, then opened the text Sun had sent her.

_I just looked up your friend Ilia and nothing came up._

Blake got up, furrowing her brow. _What do you mean?_

_She just doesn't exist. There's no record of an Ilia Amitola anywhere. No family either. The last Amitola was born like two hundred years ago._

Blake rubbed her eyes. It would be too much to hope for that Sun was just making a mistake. _I'm not lying to you, Sun._

_I know. There's just something real weird going on with her. People don't just disappear like that._

A minute passed before he messaged her again.

_I'll do some more digging, but right now I gotta go. Talk to you later, partner._

Blake put her Scroll away. She was going from being worried about Ilia to being plain unsettled. Everything about her now – the anger, the secrecy, the mysterious new Semblance – was nothing like the Ilia she used to know.

Maybe it wasn't her old friend she was dealing it after all, but a whole different person.

As she was about to sit down, Blake heard a faint hint of whispering behind her. She looked back through the window and saw movement through the downed curtains. With her heart speeding up in her chest, Blake went to the door and opened it.

The room was dark, but she saw Sienna's yellow eyes fixate on her the moment she stepped inside. Like a prey realizing it had just stumbled into its predator, Blake found herself unable to move. Her hand shook behind her, gripping the doorknob as if it was a lifeline.

It was only when Pearl spoke that Blake managed to shake off that crippling terror. Pearl was sitting right next to the bed, her knees pressed up to her chest, with a blanket covering her all but her head.

"Sorry, Blake. I know what I said, but…" Pearl's voice faltered. "I wanted to explain what happened to Sienna first."

"Why would you do that, Pearl?" Blake asked, holding back a sigh. "I should have been the one to do that. You didn't have to…"

"It's too late now."

Sienna's voice startled Blake. It was weak, but there was a steadiness to it that belied the state of her body. Coupled with the fierceness of her eyes, Blake could see her getting up and walking out of the room without a problem.

"I don't know if I'm surprised that you're here," Sienna said slowly. "I would expect you to be somewhere else…" Her eyes narrowed. " _Doing something_."

"I'm staying here to protect Pearl." _And you_ , Blake almost said before she stopped herself. "Sienna, about Fennec, I-"

"If you're about to start apologizing, save your breath," Sienna said.

"But if I had been there faster," Blake said. "If I hadn't left in the first place…"

"You saved my life and Pearl's. That should be enough." Sienna didn't sound placating at all, and still her eyes bore into Blake with the same intensity. "I'd appreciate it if you saved the pity party for outside my room."

Blake nodded. Endless apologies and lamentations would probably anger Sienna more than Blake just being frank with her. And with how tense the air between them already was, upsetting Sienna was the last thing Blake wanted to do.

Which only made what came next harder on her.

"Pearl, could you give us the room?" Blake asked, trying all she could to sound calm.

"Are… Are you sure?" Pearl said, shifting uneasily on her chair. "Whatever you wanna say, I can handle it."

"You heard the Huntress." Sienna looked at Pearl for the first time since Blake had walked in. "Shoo with you."

Pearl stood up, gathering her blanket around her shoulders. She looked at Sienna and Blake hesitantly, then walked out of the room with small steps. The door closed, immersing them in the darkness.

"Well, then." Sienna's voice cut through the silence. "What's the important business, Miss Belladonna? I'm dying to hear it."

Blake braced herself. "I need to ask if you have any idea who sent the man that did this to you."

"Oh, I've got an idea. A pretty good one," Sienna said. "Cyrius Cobalt."

"You know that's not what I'm looking for," Blake said carefully.

"Then how about you ask what you _really_ want to ask, Blake," Sienna said. "That burning little question. You know the one. I know it." She smiled sharply. "Say it with me: _Sienna, is this part of your scheme?_ "

Blake raised a hand. "I wasn't going to-"

"Don't _bullshit_ me, Belladonna, I know you thought about it! You're wondering right now if this is me trying to trick you!" Sienna exclaimed. "This is _just_ what Sienna would do! After all, what's a leg compared to an uncle? Sienna Khan would give the whole world if it meant getting the power she craves!"

Blake pursed her lips. Even if she knew what to say, she wasn't sure she would be able to, so great was Sienna's fury.

"You don't get to treat me like I'm a snake waiting to bite every time we're in the same room, then come in here and start acting like you're concerned about me," Sienna said. "Oh, you wanna save Vacuo? You wanna get justice? Then good luck to you! You can kill yourself trying, for all I care."

Silence fell, but Sienna's eyes didn't leave Blake for an instant, as if she was hoping to drive her away with her gaze only. And for a moment, Blake did almost bolt for the door, but the little resolve that remained in her kept her grounded.

"If you don't want to help me, that's fine. But there's going to be blood in the streets," Blake said. "I need you to talk to Corsac and get him to rein in the White Fang."

"So now you _want_ me to use my connections?" Sienna said. "How fast the tables turn…"

"If it means saving lives, then yes, that's what I want you to do," Blake said.

Sienna rolled her eyes. "Sure. And why ever would I do as you ask, Blake?"

"Because innocent people are going to get killed if you don't!" Blake shook her head. "Are you just going to let that happen? After all the work you've done to prevent something like this?"

"Yeah. I am. You wanna know why?" Sienna said. "Because I tried the benevolent approach. I gave my all to this goddamn country. And what did I get in return? A leg, destroyed, and a good friend, one of the only people I trusted in the world, _killed_!"

"And everyone should suffer because of what was done to you? Don't you wanna stop that from happening to someone else?" Blake asked fervently. "Isn't that what Fennec would have wanted?"

"Fennec would have wanted the whole country to burn to the ground," Sienna said. "So yeah, I think I'll do my best to honor his wishes."

Disgusted, Blake made for the door, but a chuckle from Sienna stopped her as her hand landed on the doorknob.

"I can't believe I kept you around this long," Sienna said. "You really had me fooled. Or I fooled myself."

Blake turned around, frowning. "What are you talking about?"

"All this time you thought I was trying to manipulate you, Blake? I'll tell you the truth," Sienna said. "I kept you around because you gave me _hope_. Hope that I could be more than what I was meant to be. Because you had every reason to become as bad as myself or Adam, but you didn't. You became _good_ instead. A hero." She smirked. "Or so I thought."

She sat up on her bed, wincing a little, but her eyes never strayed from Blake.

"You're no hero. If you were a hero, you would have put me down years ago, like you should have. Because you've been right all along, I'm the worst of the worst," she said. "But you're so scared of doing wrong, you never do anything at all, and the world keeps crumbling around you…"

"You're wrong," Blake said, shaking. "If it weren't for me, you'd be dead. You said it yourself."

"Yeah. You saved me. You came running to the rescue, like you always do," Sienna said. "You're no hero. You're just the same scared little girl you've always been, running from and towards trouble, pretending you could be something more. I'd be ashamed of you, if you weren't so ashamed of yourself already." She shook her head in disgust. "I'd rather be the woman who brought ruin to her home than the woman who watched and let it happen."

Blake gripped the doorknob tightly, feeling like she'd shatter into pieces the moment she let go of it. All it would take would be a breeze, and she'd be gone forever.

"Maybe I'm wrong, though," Sienna said. "So, tell me, Blake – if I told you right now, that I _was_ playing you all along, and this is just another step in my grand plan… What would you do?"

Blake opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

"That's what I thought." Sienna gestured at the door. "So, off you go again. Go protect the innocent. Gather your little evidence. Give some cold-blooded murderers a tap on the cheek for their crimes." She smiled. "And please, bring flowers the next time you visit."

After what felt like an eternity, Blake finally found the strength to open the door. As she stepped out into the hallway, the bright lights blinding her, the last of her strength withered away. She reached for something to hold onto, but her hand only slipped against a wall as she fell to her knees, burning air escaping her lungs while her heart threatened to burst from her chest-

She saw white.

* * *

"Blake? Do you hear me?"

Pearl's face came into focus, inches away from her own. The rest of the world came shortly after, the haze fading away to reveal the girl kneeling before Blake, who herself was sitting on a bench – then the lights on the ceiling, the many doors that stretched on throughout the hallway, the semi-opaque window that showed a tense silhouette lying on a bed…

Blake blinked and drew in a sharp breath. She leaned forward, one hand hovering near her chest, as if that could somehow quiet the mad drumming of her heart.

Everything was so _bright_. She blinked again, then closed her eyes and kept them that way for a good ten seconds. After that, the lights didn't seem so overwhelming, though they were still hard to ignore.

"Great." Pearl let her head hung low as she breathed heavily in relief. "You're back. You're alright now."

Blake caught herself starting to blink compulsively again and stopped herself, unreasonably frustrated with the action. "What-" She looked around, her eyes passing over a clock on the wall. "What the hell happened? When did…"

She rubbed her forehead and looked at the clock again. She was sure she hadn't spent that long talking to Sienna. Their conversation couldn't have taken more than ten, maybe fifteen minutes.

Certainly not an hour.

"Blake… You had a panic attack," Pearl said.

"What? No, I didn't," Blake blurted out. "I don't have panic attacks."

"There's a first time for everything…" Pearl said sadly. "You want me to call the doctor so he can explain it to you? He said you should see him as soon as-"

"I know what a panic attack is!" Blake exclaimed. "I _don't_ have them."

"Don't yell at me!" Pearl bristled. A moment later, her expression softened, and she reached for Blake's hand. "Blake, there's nothing shameful about-"

Blake got up and walked away from Pearl, then doubled back suddenly. Her eyes went to the clock again for a split second, and she shook her head frenziedly. That couldn't be right.

An hour? She would never…

"Come on, Blake. Just sit down," Pearl begged. "You're gonna make it happen again."

"I told you I don't-" Blake cut herself short. "Damnit! I'm supposed to be taking care of you, instead I'm-" _Losing my mind_. "You could have been attacked, and what then?"

"Nobody's gonna try to attack me. We're in a hospital, Blake. Sienna's under police protection!" Pearl said. "You don't have to protect me, you just need to stop acting like a lunatic."

"Right. _Right_." Blake nodded. "You're right. I need to get a grip, and do something."

"That's not what I said…" Pearl whined.

"Okay. Let's think," Blake said to herself. "Corsac's going to do something bad and Sienna is not going to stop him. So that falls on me. Who would he send the White Fang after? Cobalt's the obvious target, but he's too well protected… Same for the gunman. Sun was right, the White Fang probably can't get to him as long as the police has him."

"Blake, you're scaring me. Can you just sit down, please?"

Blake stopped pacing.

If those two targets were out of question, then she couldn't think who else Corsac would go after. Well, she could think of plenty humans of importance, like the other councilmen, but there was no way for her to protect all of them at once.

"Run it back," she muttered. "Corsac's angry. The gunman's with the police. Sienna is out of commission. Cobalt's protected. Adam… No way to know." She frowned. "Ilia."

"Who the hell…?" Pearl looked at her in confusion. She stood up, her expression hardening, and pointed at the bench. "That is _it_. Blake, you're gonna listen to me and you're gonna sit down!"

Blake turned to face her, but her mind was still far away as she recalled what she'd found yesterday, before the attack, before Fennec had called her…

"Nobody asked you to save the world, okay?" Pearl said. "I get that you want to help, but people are already looking into this stuff. You've looked after me, you've looked after Sienna, now you've gotta look after yourself. If Vacuo falls apart, it's not gonna be because of you." She paused. "Besides, if you _are_ needed, for whatever reason – Sun has your number, right? So if he sees everything's going up in flames, he knows who to call! _Then_ you have my permission to go throw yourself into danger like a madwoman."

"Sun." Blake blinked. "I need to go."

" _What_?!" Pearl stepped back, her eyes watering. "You're not even listening to me!"

"I think Sun's in danger," Blake said. She took out her Scroll, typed something out quickly, then handed it to Pearl. "Keep an eye on Sienna for me. If anything happens, or if you need me, call Sun. I'll be with him. Okay?"

Pearl looked down at the Scroll and slowly nodded. Blake gave her shoulder a quick shake, then turned around and stormed off, looking like she was ready to take on the entire world.

"I thought you'd promised you weren't going anywhere," Pearl whispered.

* * *

Sun was starting to get angry.

Okay, that wasn't entirely truthful. There had been things about his job that had been bothering him since the day he'd joined the Suntide Police Department.

He didn't like that eighty percent of the criminals they brought in were faunus, when he knew that half of those had done nothing worse than what the average human Vacuan did on the regular, and nobody batted an eye at them. There was a bias there, and he felt dirty, knowing that it was there but unable to do anything about it.

Then there were his workmates. Half of them were the reason that bias existed in the first place. To call them narrow-minded would be giving them too much credit. They belonged behind bars more than any of the faunus they put there, as far as Sun as concerned.

The other half wasn't so bad, they were just there to do their jobs, and try to do some real good while at it. And a small subset of them – a couple other faunus and the more open-minded humans – was in the same boat as Sun. They knew what was really going on, and they were powerless to enact any change.

And then, of course, there was Chief Orre, a man so bigoted Sun had a suspicion he'd traveled back in time from a century ago – and when someone was too racist for modern Vacuo, and he was in charge of the law enforcement in one of its biggest cities, that was _bad_. But no matter what the Chief did, no matter how much opposition he received, he never lost his station. He had connections up high, as Sun had learned in the worst way.

Well, perhaps not the _worst_ way. He shouldn't discount his blessings like that.

Yes, he had been angry for a while, to say the least. He had been for months, but he'd quickly learned to suppress it, in the interest of not ending up dead. So he kept his head down, did exactly what he was told, and did what good he could where he had the chance.

Which is why his anger was reaching a breaking point today. The precinct was in a state of complete disorder. Half of the city's force had been called to work on the Sienna Khan case, so the place was crowded to the limit. And if that wasn't bad enough, there were arguments breaking out every other minute, between the bad apples and the… less-bad apples.

Ironically, Sun wasn't angry at his bigoted workmates – not anymore than he normally was, at least. A dog barked, a duck quaked, and a bad cop tried to frame a woman for being assaulted in her own home. No surprises there.

But the good ones, they were going through the same experience Sun had within his first month. His whole life, really. They were seeing something wrong happening right in front of their eyes, and being shut down _hard_ for calling it out. And slowly, they were starting to understand. They were starting to see that they were complicit, that bad people could only exert their power when the good people stayed silent.

And Sun was angry because he'd known that all along, and he'd let himself fall into that same hole anyways. In the end, he was the worst of the bunch.

No more.

With pandemonium springing around him, Sun put his badge and phone down on his desk, not noticing how the latter buzzed. He stood up, his tail swinging leisurely behind him, and looked around the precinct until he saw the Chief standing three desks over from him, all but yelling at two of his officers.

Sun took in a deep breath, then spoke, loud and clear. "Hey, Chief. When are you going to start doing your job?"

The Chief stopped mid-sentence, and everyone fell silent around them. Sun felt the entire room looking at him, but he had eyes only for the Chief as he stomped towards him, a look on his face like he wanted to – and would, if given the chance – reduce Sun to a broken mess of limbs.

"What is that you said, Wukong?" he said steely. "I must have heard you wrong. Care to repeat yourself?"

Sun raised his chin. "I said, when are you going to start doing your job?"

"How dare you!" the Chief boomed. "This is insubordination! I could have you thrown on the street just for that, Wukong, and I think I will!"

"Yeah, you can do that, whatever, but you're gonna hear me out first. Everyone will," Sun said. "Unless you're too scared to let a lowly faunus like me speak?"

The Chief raised a fist, but with everyone in the precinct staring at him, it just hovered there, trembling. Red-faced, he grunted and nodded at Sun.

"We're wasting our time here, and we all know it," Sun said. "We're supposed to be looking into who tried to kill Sienna Khan, and instead all you've had us do is dig into her history, hoping to find a smoking gun there. And the ones of us who aren't doing _that_ , are instead investigating the people around her. Corsac Albain, whose brother just got killed in the attack? And Pearl! She's just a girl, and this is the second shooting she's survived in a month!"

"Do I have to explain how we work, rookie?" the Chief scoffed. "Everyone is a suspect until cleared otherwise. Doesn't matter how unlikely it seems, we don't make assumptions about anyone's innocence."

"Yeah, but that works both ways! Right now, we're assuming Sienna or someone related to her is the culprit, while ignoring the tens of other suspects that are way more plausible!" Sun exclaimed. "It's fine we're investigating Sienna. We should. But not before we look into Cobalt and everyone else that has something to gain by killing her off before the elections!"

The Chief's lips parted to reveal his teeth grinding against each other. Sun took a step back, doubting that a room full of cops would stop him from being jumped now.

"I'd like to see you try and coordinate this investigation, rookie, since you're so enlightened," the Chief said. "You think you can talk to me like that, like I don't know what I'm doing? I'm your superior officer! I was cleaning the streets of Suntide of its lowlifes before you even knew how to crawl!"

"Oh, I think you know exactly what you're doing," Sun said. "And, yeah, I don't know how to do all this. But if you want a suggestion, I think we should start by telling everyone about the Cleansers, and how the guy we've got down there in a cell is one of them."

He looked around the room, at his fellow officers that shifted uneasily at the mention of that name, the guilt-ridden faces that some of them made, and the anger that radiated from others. It wasn't just the Chief that wanted to get his hands on him anymore.

"Yeah, that's right. You all know what I'm talking about. Now's the time to stop pretending," he said. "We're not gonna beat these guys by keeping them in the shadows. That's their turf. We gotta drag them into the light, expose them for what they are. We take their power away from them, and it's game over." He paused. "We do it now, before someone else gets killed. Who's with me?"

Sun looked at each of his colleagues and received no response. Some were clearly apologetic, others ashamed. The only ones to meet his eyes did so with cruel mirth in their faces. What they all silently agreed on is that he shouldn't have said any of that out loud, especially directly to their boss.

"Well, well," the Chief said, smiling smugly. "Looks like you're alone on this, Wukong."

"Looks that way," Sun muttered. He turned to the Chief again, coiling his tail around his waist, and looked him in the eyes. "Well, if you're not going to talk, and they're not going to talk, then I will." He tapped his cheek thoughtfully. "Say, how hard is it to call a press conference if you're just a rookie? Doesn't seem like something that could normally happen… But the press is _really_ desperate right now."

The Chief stepped towards him, fists curled. "You degenerate _monkey_. Are you _threating me_?"

"Not threatening you, chief." Sun grinned. "Just telling you like it is."

And that, probably, was how he signed his death sentence. He kept grinning as the Chief stared murderously at him, and saw a half dozen cops leave their desks and start moving towards him in unison.

He probably should have thought this more thoroughly. Sure, he could make a run for it, but then what? If he did somehow make it out of the precinct alive, he would be declared an outlaw, and who would listen to him then? If he were a smarter man, he would have waited to talk to the press later. But no, he had to confront the Chief in front of everyone…

Well, it had felt good, at least. And maybe someone would pick up from where he'd left off. He was ever the idealist.

And then, just as the circle of cops was starting to close around him, the lights went out.

"What the hell? Who turned off the lights?" someone yelled.

"It's not that! The whole place's gone dark!"

"Someone go check the breakers!" the Chief barked. "And keep a goddamn eye on the prisoner!"

"Uhm, this isn't all for me, right?" Sun said. "'Cause I'm flattered, but…"

Gunshots came from the front of the precinct, from multiple weapons at once – and then they stopped, as quickly as they started. Sun heard bodies falling on the floor, but a second later that sound was lost in the chaos of the officers drawing their guns and yelling at each other all around him.

The front door opened, and for a split second, Sun saw the silhouette of a woman against the light of day, before she ran inside and disappeared in the shadows.

"Nobody shoot!" the Chief shouted. "Whoever you are, show yourself! This is your only chance!"

A few seconds passed, and the woman reappeared, standing on a desk in the middle of the room. Sun blinked – it was like one moment she wasn't there, and then suddenly she was. It was no surprise that his human colleagues had lost sight of her, but he had better vision than them, so something else was at play.

"I only want one thing. To talk to the murderer of Fennec Albain," the woman declared, her voice cold and hard. "I have no problem going through all of you to get to him. But give me an excuse, and I'll-"

The Chief pointed his gun and shot, and her head snapped back as the bullet bounced off her forehead. More gunfire followed from the other officers.

Sun's eyes widened.

* * *

"…And there it is."

Ilia cracked her neck as the gunfire ceased. She rolled her shoulders, wincing at the burning sensation on her arms and back. Her Aura had deflected the bullets, but they still stung. If she were anyone else… _Almost_ anyone else…

But she was what she was. And damn, if she wasn't happy about that right now.

She leaped from the desk and slammed the underside of her foot against an officer's face, knocking him over a chair. As her feet hit the floor and he regained his balance, she swung a fist against his chest, and he collapsed, limbs sprawled out.

 _Like putty_.

The cops opened fire again, but she was already gone, blending into the darkness as her skin turned dark. She stayed away from the windows as she jumped from one officer to the next, her fists meeting flesh and lighting nerves on fire, bringing grown men down like they mere children.

 _Powerless_.

She reached the Chief and jumped onto a desk in front of him. He stumbled back, unloading an entire magazine on her, and she let him. When he was done, her skin changed from dark to orange, this time not on purpose.

She just couldn't help herself.

"Thank you for the excuse, pig."

She buried her fist in his gust and left it there for a while, smirking as she saw the color drain from his face. Drool escaped from the corner of his lips, and his eyes rolled back into his head. Only then did she take her fist back. For good measure, she slapped the side of his head with the back of her hand, and as he collapsed, she spun around and marched towards the stairs that would lead her down to the holding cells.

"Hey now!"

Someone jumped in her path, one last cop she must have missed somehow. He stood with his back to the stairs, his pistol aimed at her face even as she walked towards him, unfazed. She raised her hand again, thinking how unfortunate it was that he'd chosen that spot to make his stand – he was bound for a nasty fall.

"Sorry, can't let you past here, even if I appreciate the special attention to my boss," he said. "Why don't we have a friendly talk? I ignore that you demolished all my colleagues, you don't punch me in the face – it's a good deal for everyone involved."

Ilia rolled her eyes. Great. A talkative one.

"Okay, I can see you're nervous, so I'll start! I'm Sun Wukong, Rookie Detective!" he exclaimed, stuttering a bit. "And you must be Ilia Amitola, yeah?"

Ilia stopped one second away from punching him in the face. She stepped back, returning to her regular colors, and stared in bewilderment at him.

"How the hell do you know me?" she asked, and lunged forward to grab him by his collar. "Talk!"

"Y-yeah, that's the plan! Jeez, you super-women can be rough!" he said, slapping her hand ineffectively. "We have a… a mutual friend! A mutual friend who would be very upset with you if you knocked me – her partner, her best friend, really! – down these _very long and edgy stairs_!"

"What the hell are you…" Ilia stopped, noticing the tail swinging nervously behind him. "Forget it. I don't have time for this crap."

"Wait wait wait you don't wanna do that come on we're friends here I can tell you a funny joke if you want like why did the chicken faunus cross-"

Ilia punched him in the shoulder and waited for him to go slack, then turned around and put him down on the floor.

"If I ever see you again, you'll get the chief's treatment," she said.

She turned her back to him and hopped down the stairs, cracking her fists as she prepared for the next wave of pigs that would try to stop her.

It was a fun thought, almost enough to distract her from the distressing realization that was taking form at the back of her mind.

* * *

Blake ran inside the precinct and cursed under her breath when she saw the bodies scattered throughout the floor. "I'm too late. Damnit, I'm too late."

She brought her hands to her head and closed her eyes, trying to keep her cool while she thought of what to next.

"Blake? Blake!" She heard someone whispering, and quickly recognized the voice as Sun's. "Over here, by the stairs!"

Blake ran towards his voice and found Sun lying back against a wall, rubbing his forehead as if he was in pain.

"Sun! Are you okay?" she asked, grabbing his hands. "What happened, did Ilia-"

"Yeah. She took us all down. I tried to stop her, but…" He groaned. "She's a little way out of my league."

Blake looked around, frowning. "How are you up already? The others are all out cold."

"She was gentle. I think she kinda likes me." Sun shook his head. "Blake, she's – she's after the Cleanser dude. I think she's still here, or she just left. If you're fast enough, you might be able to catch her!"

"But-"

A noise of something metallic hitting the floor boomed from downstairs.

"I'll be okay!" Sun exclaimed. "Go!"

Blake got up and ran down the stairs, reaching for her blade in instinct before she stopped herself. She didn't want to use that against Ilia, even if that probably was the smarter thing to do.

She reached the end of the stairs and found the metal door to one of the interrogation rooms lying on the floor, along with a dozen more policemen. She peered inside and saw the room was empty, though the chairs and table were knocked over, as if a fight had ensued inside.

Going back out, Blake realized there was only one way Ilia could have gone, and so she ran down the hallway, passing more downed cops along the way. Finally, she saw a door at the end of the hallway, with an exit sign flashing above it. She kicked it open and came out into an open parking lot, with rows upon rows of police cars in it.

Blake slowed to a halt. Within moments, she saw Ilia, stumbling her way over to one of the cars with the Cleanser hoisted haphazardly over her shoulder, out cold. When she reached the car, Ilia plopped the man down on the hood and produced a car key from the pocket of her shorts. She pressed a button and unlocked the car, then opened the back door and started going back to the Cleanser.

And then their eyes met.

Blake's heart rose to her throat as finally, after six long years, she saw Ilia again, in the light of day. She was still small, like she'd defied nature to stay as tall as she'd been the last day Blake had seen her. Her hair was still that delightful auburn color – just like then, it seemed like it could never decide if it wanted to be red or brown. And those little dark spots on her skin… still there.

Ilia hadn't changed. But she had. Blake could see it in her eyes, in her face, even from such a distance. Ilia had changed, or something had changed her. How, Blake couldn't quite tell yet.

But she needed to know.

"Ilia." She started walking towards the car, but stopped as Ilia's skin turned a vivid red. "Don't… don't run."

"Don't run?" Ilia repeated bitterly. "That's precious coming from you."

She grabbed the Cleanser and tossed him in the back, then closed the door and slid over the hood to get to the driver's side.

"Ilia, what are you doing?" Blake ran to stand in front of the car. "Where are you taking him? Why? What's – What's going on with you?"

"I don't owe you an explanation. I don't owe you anything!" Ilia slammed her hand on the side of the car. "You wanna fight? Is that it? 'Cause I'll do it if that's what it takes for you to leave me alone!"

"I just wanna talk to you, Ilia!" Blake said. "Please, just talk to me!"

She reached for Ilia, grabbing for her hand or wrist, anything to keep her from going – and suddenly she was stumbling back, a painful jolt running down her right arm from her shoulder and leaving a numbing sensation behind.

"Don't touch me," Ilia said, and slipped inside the car. She closed the door hard, making the vehicle waver, and put in the keys and turned them, her skin almost glowing red.

Blake held her shoulder, trying to find something to say, but her brain seemed to be malfunctioning, and her heart was taking over – which would have been a big enough problem if it weren't having a breakdown too.

The noise of guns being cocked snapped her from her stupor. Blake looked around, and her blood went cold as she saw dozens of faunus converging near the exit of the parking lot, rifles and pistols and shotguns in their hands. Their faces were hidden behind masks, but Blake could identify the leading one easily – Trifa.

"Ilia," she said, her mouth dry. "You're making a mistake. I don't know what you're planning, but you're going to get people killed." She nodded at the backseat. "You're going to get _him_ killed."

"Don't worry, I don't plan on him dying anytime soon," Ilia said. "You prefer I stay here to fight all these idiots? We're gonna team up like we're all buddy-buddy and everything's okay?"

"No. Ilia, just – Look, just get out of the car," Blake said. "We'll take him back inside. And then we'll… I don't know. We'll sort this out. But if you leave, if you do this, there's no going back."

"That ship sailed a long time ago, Blake." Ilia looked at her, her skin turning blue for a moment before it returned to normal. "Get out of the way. Don't make me run you over."

Blake looked at the approaching White Fang, then back at Ilia. Giving up on her brain, and knowing that she'd regret listening to her heart later, she ran to the passenger door and got inside the car beside Ilia.

"What are you doing?" Ilia asked, bewildered. "Are you insane? Get out!"

"Just drive," Blake said. "Ilia, just drive!"

Ilia screamed in frustration and stomped on the gas. "I hate you so much!"

They blasted out of the parking spot and Ilia spun the steering wheel, and the car went screeching as it turned towards the exit and the White Fang. Trifa realized what was about to happen and screamed at her allies, and they jumped aside just in time to avoid being run over.

They got on the road, and Blake stuck her head out the window and looked back. The faunus were getting up already, and some were running back to the sidewalk, towards the cars and motorcycles they'd left running there.

"They're definitely going to follow us," Blake said. She looked at Ilia apprehensively. "Please tell me you have somewhere we can hide."

"Don't talk to me. Just buckle in and hold onto something," Ilia grumbled, hunched over the steering wheel, her knuckles deathly white as she drove. "This is gonna be a rough ride."


	8. Ride or Die, As It Should Have Been

Meagan Verid slipped into her office and closed the door behind her, pressing her back against it as she took a much-needed breath. She had seen a lot of serious shit go down throughout her career, and had been the one to report on it several times herself. Those experiences had shaped her as a professional and as a person, and nowadays, she considered herself a fairly difficult woman to shake because of it.

And yet she had to admit, the events that had been unfolding around her, in her very home city, were starting to unsettle her. As a necessity of her job, she'd become largely desensitized to the racial violence that was typical of Vacuo, but what was happening now felt different, worse somehow, and she knew the aftermath would change _everything_. She just didn't know how yet.

Such a monumental change would make for just as big a story, yet for the first time in years, Meagan was hoping she would get passed over to report on it.

But a job was a job, and hers was a very important one. She could cower in her office until everything blew over, but out there were stories that needed to be told, and truths waiting to be uncovered and brought into the light. That was why she'd chosen this life years ago, and so today she was going to chin up, grab her coat, and-

Meagan looked at her desk and frowned. That envelope hadn't been there an hour ago, had it? And she hadn't heard from her boss or her colleagues about them dropping something off. Puzzled, she took the envelope and gave it a light shake, then opened it.

An USB drive? Well, she had received weirder things before. But she couldn't just plug this into her computer without sending it to the office's tech team first. With everything she had on her plate already, part of her wanted to not bother and just throw the flash drive in the trash, but if someone had gone through the lengths to send her something, it probably meant it would be of interest to her.

And then her phone started to ring. "God effing damnit," she muttered, picking it up and giving a glance at the screen. Unknown number, because of course it was. She brought it to her ear and listened for a while, her expression going from annoyed to intrigued.

"And how can I help you, Mister Wukong?"

* * *

"They're still on us," Blake said, looking over her shoulder and holding onto her seat for dear life as Ilia took them blazing through the bustling streets of Suntide in the police car she – _they_? – had stolen. "I don't think we can lose them. Ilia _, can_ we lose them?"

"Sorry, Blake, I can't give you an analysis right now, seeing as I already have my hands full with making sure we don't get squashed into goddamn pancakes!" Ilia yelled.

"Well, Trifa's getting close," Blake said. "She'll catch up to us soon, unless you do something."

"Yes. Thank you very much, Blake. I really appreciate the advice and encouragement and-" Ilia jerked the steering wheel to the side as another car came from around a corner in front of them, avoiding a collision by mere inches. If she'd reacted half a second later…

Blake caught her breath, then looked back again. To Ilia's credit, she had done a splendid job of losing the majority of their pursuers, leaving them stuck in the hectic afternoon traffic – the ones that were giving chase on cars, that is. But Trifa and a few more were on motorcycles, and they could weave around the other vehicles on the road with ease. There was nothing Ilia could do about that.

Trifa herself seemed particularly intent on catching up to them, having had her fair share of near-crashes too as she followed their trail. Blake had to wonder if Trifa held such a grudge against her because of their earlier encounter, that she was willing to risk her life so badly just to get a shot at revenge. That seemed like the only explanation for her behavior.

Blake wasn't worried Trifa could do anything to her, or even to Ilia. But Trifa had a gun, and they were in public. If she got close and started shooting, that could end very badly for any unlucky bystanders.

"Ilia," Blake said. "Can you open my window?"

"What? Are you serious?" Ilia said, not taking her eyes off the road for an instant. "Now, I wouldn't _mind it_ if you jumped out, but-"

"Just do it, please. And slow down when Trifa catches up to us."

Ilia gave her a brief look, then shook her head in disbelief and flicked a switch under the steering wheel, rolling down the passenger's window. Blake straightened up on her seat, her hands opening and closing nervously as she contemplated what she was about to do.

She watched Trifa's advance through the rearview, counting the seconds as the spider faunus dodged the vehicles in-between them, until she inevitably reached the car. Blake saw her take one hand off the handles and reach for the holster on her waist – then suddenly lost her from view as the car lunged forward and Trifa was left behind again.

"Ilia!" Blake exclaimed. "I told you to slow down!"

"Well, what was I supposed to do? She was going to shoot you!" Ilia screamed. "Or me. Sorry, but I prefer to at least make her _work_ for it."

"I have a plan, okay? I can get her off our trail," Blake said. "Just trust me on this, Ilia. Let her catch up."

Ilia leaned forward on the steering wheel, her hands trembling around it. She muttered something under her breath, then eased up on the accelerator.

After a few seconds, Trifa appeared beside them again. She matched their speed and looked directly at Blake, a callous grin splitting her lips. "Nobody to bail you out this time, pet." She took her pistol from its holster and twisted in her seat, aiming into the car. "Say your goodbyes."

Blake stared at the barrel of the gun, steeling herself as the world seemed to grind to a halt around her – then suddenly, she sprung from her seat, sticking her upper body through the window and grabbing Trifa's arm. She brought her left hand in a chopping motion down on Trifa's wrist, and the pistol fell from between her fingers and disappeared amidst the sea of cement below them.

"What the hell!" Trifa yelled. "Let me go, you bitch!"

"I'm gonna push you, and you're gonna fall," Blake said, as calmly as she could under the circumstances. "Protect your head. One, two…"

Trifa's seemed to realize what was about to happen just as Blake reached three and gave her shoulder a light shove. She didn't fall over, but her motorcycle started to wobble dangerously, swerving from left to right erratically – until it hit a curb and she and it toppled over onto a sidewalk.

Blake took her eyes off the scene and fell back on her seat, her breath caught in her throat. Ilia reached under the wheel again, and Blake's window rolled up, uncannily loud in the silence inside the car.

"Someone was gonna get hurt because of her," Blake said, her voice sounding strange to her own ears. "Better her than an innocent pedestrian."

"Or us," Ilia muttered. "I wasn't going to say anything. However she ends up, it's her fault." A couple seconds of silence passed, and she added, "You did a good job."

Blake leaned back and stared at the road despondently. Ilia's assurance didn't make her feel any better, even if it was the first nice thing she'd said to her today.

"Hopefully her pals will stop to check on her. Should give us enough time to lose them for good," Ilia said. "I know a place we can hide up ahead, but we'll need to ditch this car first."

"Or, better yet, we ditch it right now, and you can turn yourself over to the police," Blake said.

"Only if you come with me," Ilia said dryly. "Ride or die, Blake. Like old times."

"Like old times," Blake repeated quietly.

She looked at the Cleanser sprawled out on the backseat. His eyes were wide open, even if the rest of his body was still as a statue. The way he was looking at her, Blake could tell he was at that fragile place just before panic overtook coherent thought. The sight of someone helpless in such a way was nothing short of unsettling, even if that person was a murderous monster.

"He's okay. Just paralyzed," Ilia said. "For now, anyway."

Blake looked at Ilia and felt despair creep up on her again as the adrenaline from the encounter with Trifa faded. She knew nothing she could say would convince Ilia to stop whatever she was planning to do. The only option, then, was to stick by her side… and to stop Ilia herself, if she had to.

Blake prayed it wouldn't come to that.

* * *

The beeping was the worst.

The beeping meant she was still in the hospital. It meant she would never walk on her left leg again. It meant the world was still going up in flames around her. It meant Fennec was dead.

The beeping meant it was all real. And it just wouldn't go away.

"You're a real jerk, you know that?"

Sienna forced her eyes to open and looked at Pearl through the layers of blurriness between them. She blinked and leaned her head to the side, but the movement only made her feel woozy. There was a pain underneath her blankets, but there also wasn't. It didn't make sense.

Nothing about her body seemed to make sense anymore. Or her mind. She was drifting away… Only to be violently yanked back to reality.

Everything, everything about being awake, felt awful.

"You are," Pearl said. "Don't pretend you didn't hear me."

"I can't…" Sienna stopped talking – not because she didn't have the strength to speak, but because suddenly she'd forgotten what she'd been meaning to say in the first place.

No, not _forgotten_. It was more like the words, the very thought of them, had been whisked away from her. They were still there, just out of reach. If she could just catch them again…

"What's happening to me?" she mumbled.

"You dozed off, and the nurses dosed you with some new meds," Pearl said. "You must be feeling all kinds of weird right now."

"Don't have… Don't have to tell me that."

Sienna made to rub her forehead, and her arm seemed to rise a second too slow, like there was a continent of distance between it and her brain. Or maybe it was just her imagination.

"Are you in pain?" Pearl asked anxiously.

"Yes. Only a little. It hurt a lot more before." Sienna paused. "I also felt actually awake before. What's the word? Lucid." She frowned. "I don't like these new meds."

"Yeah, well, suck it up." Pearl shrugged. "At least this way you'll be a little less of a jerk."

"Why… Why do you keep calling me that?"

"Because it's what you are," Pearl said through gritted teeth. "You freaked Blake out so bad she had a panic attack. You're just… You're terrible."

Sienna rubbed her eyes, and just like that, her vision was crystal clear. She looked at Pearl and noticed the anger on her face. It wasn't like before, when she'd reacted in self-defense because she'd felt hurt or attacked. For the first time, her anger was true and without reserve.

"You don't get to hurt people just because you're hurting," Pearl said. " _You_ told me that. So you didn't mean it? Or, maybe it doesn't apply to you?"

"I just… I was angry," Sienna muttered. "And hurt."

"You still said all that crap," Pearl said. "And Blake still freaked out. No excuses."

"…You're being kind of a jerk right now, too."

Pearl opened her mouth, then closed it, her gaze softening somewhat.

"I just… I heard everything you said to her. And I don't understand all of it, but that part about letting everything burn… That's not the Sienna I know," she said. "I expect a lot better from you, is all."

Sienna looked down at her lap, unable to meet Pearl's eyes any longer. She'd promised her that she would make things better, hadn't she? She'd promised to make Vacuo a place where she could be free and safe. And now…

Now, Fennec was dead. And his murderer was going to live free.

"That's some expectation," Sienna said bitterly. "Have you considered that maybe you never knew me at all?"

They were silent for a moment, before Pearl got up and walked to the door.

"I'm considering it now."

She left the room, leaving Sienna alone with her thoughts.

* * *

Ilia turned the car to the side, taking it off the road altogether and pulling it into the overgrown foliage that surrounded it. She stopped a few seconds later and unlocked the doors, then got out. Blake cast a worried glance at the backseat, then shook her head and got out too.

"Don't tell me _this_ is your idea of a hiding place," Blake said, pushing a branch away from her face.

"Come on, Blake. Don't be dense," Ilia said irritably. "See the bridge up ahead?"

Blake followed her line of sight. Ilia had taken them to the northern border of Suntide, and Blake had thought she'd meant for them to flee the city altogether, but then she'd stopped the car just before they got into the main highway exit. Said exit included a five-kilometers long bridge over the Fajardo river, which flowed out into the sea to the east.

"Yeah, I see it," Blake said. "We obviously can't get through, the police must have already posted watchmen there to catch us if we tried." She looked at Ilia. "And, to be clear, if it comes down to it, I am not going to fight the police. Not even for you, Ilia."

"I never asked you to do anything for me. _You_ jumped into _my_ car," Ilia said.

"The police's car, you mean."

"Whatever!" Ilia exclaimed. "Did you come with me to help, or to nag at me?"

She'd come for neither of those reasons, but Blake elected not to say that, fearing that Ilia might really snap if she did.

"What about the bridge?" she asked.

Ilia took a moment to compose herself, then gestured at the distant landmark. "The bridge is not important. What's important is what's underneath it," she said. "I know a spot near here where we can get down to the shore. Nobody should be able to see us, unless they're specifically looking there. And once we're on the shore, we'll get to my hiding spot."

Blake frowned. "And how are we going to get _him_ down there?"

Ilia opened the back door and grabbed the Cleanser by his feet, and with a heave, pulled him out so his legs were dangling off the car. "Well, you're taller than me, and you fight monsters for a living, don't you? Seems obvious to me who should be the one to carry him."

"You can't be serious," Blake said. "You didn't look like you had any trouble dragging him out of the precinct!"

"Yeah, but I only carried him because I _had to_!" Ilia replied. "Look, I'll try and help out, but I'm not at full strength right now. My Aura's a little… empty, right now."

"Well, isn't _that_ embarrassing. Maybe you should have thought about that before you beat up half the police force."

"I didn't know I would have to run from the White Fang afterwards! Are you going to help out or not?"

Shaking her head, Blake walked past Ilia and bent down to grab the Cleanser. She dragged the rest of his body out, then yanked him to his feet and let him fall against her back. With Ilia's help, she wrapped his arm around her shoulders so he wasn't as loose.

"Great. This is great," Blake muttered, straining under his weight. "Did you have to make him a dead weight, too?"

"It's better than having him trying to fight us or run from us," Ilia said.

"You say that, yet you're not the one carrying him," Blake said. "Whatever. Just lead the way."

With a grunt, and a look that could almost be perceived as thankful, Ilia turned and walked deeper into the foliage. Blake followed in resignation, dragging the limp Cleanser along with her, and tried to ignore how his eyes bore into her all the while.

* * *

Sun bounced his legs nervously and looked over his shoulder, scanning the people around him for a moment before he realized what he was doing and looked ahead again, gritting his teeth. Hanging around Blake must have affected him - he was far too paranoid for his liking. Not that he didn't have reason to be, with how he'd openly defied his boss and made him and half his colleagues his enemies, and then there was the White Fang, and who knows who else could be out to get him…

He caught himself starting to look around again and slammed his hands on his knees, forcing his legs into a standstill. Alright, he was in _some_ amount of danger, but not that much right now. He'd picked this outside café exactly for this reason. Nobody, not even the Chief, would dare make a move on him in such a public space.

Although, considering everything that had happened in the last week alone, would anyone really be that surprised if a faunus just got wacked in the head in the middle of the street? Even if said faunus was a police detective. Why, that would be just another incident in a long list of incidents, so what was stopping any of those people walking past him on the sidewalk from reaching for his neck and-

"Detective Wukong?"

Sun nearly jumped out of his skin – and he did jump out of his chair, though he was back on it a second later when he saw who had called his name. "Miss Verid!" He offered his hand and smiled. "It's Rookie!"

Ace reporter Meagan Verid looked down at his hand, then at his face. "Excuse me?"

"I mean, I'm… Nevermind. Doesn't matter." Sun lowered his hand awkwardly. "Thanks for coming. Please, sit down."

She looked around, as if wondering if she had to the right person and place after all, then seemed to decide to just go along with it and sat at the other side of the table.

"You are Sun Wukong, then?" Verid said, and her eyes brightened as she studied him. "Your name sounded familiar, but I didn't have much time to research before I left… But I think I recognize you now. You were involved with the arrest of Marcus Steel and his co-conspirators, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was the first one on the scene, actually. Did most of the arresting myself," Sun said.

"Hmm. I found that story very interesting. Wish I had covered it myself," she said with an air of intrigue. "Curious that they were all down already when you got there. How was it your medical team described their state? Paralyzed? Not that much different than what occurred to your fellow officers just now…"

"Heh, that is curious, yah…" Sun grinned nervously. "You know, that was so long ago, I'd almost forgotten about it. Feels like years have passed between then and now."

Verid stared at him for a moment, then nodded her head, acknowledging that was the only answer she was going to get about that matter. "I know the feeling. And, speaking of your colleagues, shouldn't you be helping catch the woman who attacked them? Were you at the precinct?"

"I was." Sun shook his head. "Look, this isn't about that. I mean, it is, but it isn't. I just don't want us to waste time. I'll see if I can answer your questions _after_ I tell you what I need to tell you, okay?"

"Fair enough," Verid said, and started fishing for something in the pocket of her coat. "Should I record this, or do you wish to remain anonymous?"

Sun froze. He hadn't even thought that might be an issue. He was already in deep trouble with his boss, but putting his name out there together with the information he was about to divulge, that would get him fired for sure, and that was the least of it. But didn't he have an obligation to shoulder the truth? God, he wasn't prepared for this…

"We'll keep this off the record, then," Verid said, putting her hands back on the table. "There's no shame in protecting yourself, Detective."

"But won't that make your job harder?" Sun asked unsurely.

"Let me worry about my job, Detective. Just make this worth my while."

Sun nodded, then reached for the backpack he'd been hiding between his feet. He opened it and reached inside for the files, and after a moment's hesitation, took them out and slid them across the table.

"What's this?" Verid asked, just holding the files for now.

"That's a copy of some very confidential files from the Suntide PD," Sun said. "It's got some pretty nasty information inside, information Chief Orre and his cronies have been hiding for decades. It explains some of what's been happening here recently."

Verid looked at him dubiously, then opened the first file and took a look inside. Not ten seconds later, she'd closed it already, a sick look on her face. "The hell…?"

"There's an extremist anti-faunus group in Vacuo called the Cleansers. Their mission is to exterminate all the country's faunus to 'reclaim' it for themselves," Sun said. "They've existed for a long time, for sure longer than these files tell. And there's no way to know how many there are."

"You have to be joking. This is a sick joke," Verid said angrily. "You can't keep something like this a secret, especially this long. Even with the support of the police and, and who knows who else, it's just not feasible."

"Except it's the truth. I wish it wasn't, but it is." Sun shrugged sadly. "I don't know what to tell you."

Verid shook her head, as if she didn't know what to think. She took another file and opened it, and this time she managed to shuffle through it to completion, though the disgust never left her face.

Sun waited as she went through all the files, his nerves getting to him once more, though not out of fear for his safety like before. No, he was more afraid that he might be doing the wrong thing. He knew Verid would do with this information what any good reporter would, and he would be happy to see the Cleansers finally brought to light, but he worried about what more that might entail. Things had been violent enough when the enemies were unknown. What if he was only making the situation worse by revealing who they were?

"Okay, I think I've seen enough…" Verid said, putting the last file down with trembling fingers. "How does this relate to what's been going on?"

"First off, Marcus Steel is a Cleanser. As far as I know, all his buddies are too. The shooting downtown, it was part of some kind of initiation. His friend had to kill a faunus to prove himself, and his target was Pearl, but things went sideways…" Sun rubbed his neck uncomfortably. "You know what happened."

"I see. That makes sense with what we already know," Verid said. "And…?"

"The guy that invaded Sienna Khan's property and killed Fennec Albain, he's a Cleanser too. But he wasn't acting alone, there's no doubt about that, we just don't know who else was involved," Sun said, and shifted on his chair. "I guess it might take a while for us to find out, now that he's been kidnapped. And I don't know _anything_ about that."

Sun kicked himself in the ankle. _Smooth, Detective_. His indiscretion definitely didn't go unnoticed by Verid, but luckily for him, she seemed already far too preoccupied with what he'd told her to press him with more questions.

"This is a lot to take in," Verid said, slumping back on her chair. "I don't know what to say but, thank you, Detective. What you've shown me… This could change everything. Maybe finally put an end to this streak of horrors we've been subjected to." She paused, her lips twitching in discomfort. "Maybe."

"I don't think it's gonna be that easy, but I know it will help, at least. That's why I called you," Sun said. "I'm just doing what any good person would, really."

Verid's eyebrows rose. "If that were true, we would have never had a conversation of this type, Detective."

"I guess," Sun said, disheartened, though he regained his spirit shortly and leaned forward over the table, pushing the files closer to Verid so that they were almost falling off the edge onto her lap. "You keep these, just be careful who sees them. Though I guess I don't need to tell you that. Sorry."

"No offense taken. And thank you. They will be very useful," Verid said, taking the files and putting them inside her purse. "I'll make this my first and only priority from now on. It will take some effort to get the evidence just right, not to mention I'll have to convince my editors to run the story too. But I'm confident I can do this."

"I'll help you, however you need," Sun said. "I'll even give my name and everything if that's what it takes to make it legitimate."

"I appreciate that. Hopefully it won't be necessary, but if it comes down to it… Well, I have your number."

She got up, as did he. They shook hands, and after a subtle nod, Verid turned and walked out of the café, taking her phone out and bringing it to her ear. Sun watched her until she was gone, then fell back on his chair.

He had never felt so relieved and anxious before in his life. Sharing the truth and knowing that it would soon be released into the world took a huge weight off his shoulders, but at the same time, he wished he could take it all back. Every deed had its consequences, even the good ones – especially the good ones – and Sun was ready to pay for this one. The only problem was, he had a feeling he wouldn't be one paying this time.

So absorbed he was in in thoughts, he didn't notice Verid had returned until she sat down in front of him again and all but slammed her phone down between them. Sun looked up at her, startled by the sound and movement, only to become even more worried when he saw the pale look on her face.

"Meagan? Uhm, Miss Verid?" he asked nervously. "Are you okay? Did something happen?"

"Someone dropped an USB drive in my office earlier today. An anonymous tip. We get those from time to time," Verid said. "My team just forwarded me what they found inside it."

"And…?"

Verid pushed her phone towards him and turned on the screen. A photo was already on display, and in the index below it were several more, a true gallery, as well as a couple audio files.

"I think our story just got fast-tracked, Detective."

* * *

Blake stumbled through the passage, nearly tumbling to the floor with the Cleanser on top of her as she foot caught on something. Miraculously, she managed to regain her balance, and found a wall to rest against. While she caught her breath, the sound of metal sliding against metal echoed in her ears, and the light that came from outside slowly dimmed until she was immersed in darkness.

"Sorry. Can't just leave the door open for anyone to follow," Ilia said, somewhere behind her. "We still got a little more to go, though. Hold on while I find a light."

"Don't bother. We can both see, can't we?" Blake asked, starting to push herself off the wall.

"Stay."

Suddenly, Ilia was in front of her, a vague shape in the pitch-black, even to Blake's eyes. Blake felt a hand on her shoulder and, feeling inexplicably short for words all of a sudden, let herself be pushed back against the wall.

"I don't want you tripping over yourself," Ilia said, and after a short silence, "Would be bad if you broke his neck."

"Right," Blake said. "Thanks."

Ilia's shape joined the shadows around them, and Blake heard her steps echoing away from her. Taking in a shaky breath, she rested her back against the wall, her hand gripping the back of the Cleanser's shirt to keep him upright. She preferred to keep him turned sharply away from her. She knew he couldn't see her in the dark, not like she could see him, but nonetheless, having his eyes on her made her feel all kinds of disturbed.

Up until recently, she used to think the world was going mad, what with the rise of superpowered people, extradimensional demons, and, of course, the constant murders in her home country. But she was starting to think it was she who was mad instead.

She had to be, to be doing something like this.

"Aha." A circle of light appeared on the ceiling a few meters away from Blake, and she followed it down to Ilia, who was holding a flashlight next to her head, a self-satisfied smirk on her lips. "Knew I had left this somewhere. We should be safe to move around now. This way, follow me."

Blake gave no objection, following Ilia as she walked further into the tunnel. As they walked on, the walls narrowed to the point that Blake could barely move herself and the Cleanser without hitting their moist concrete slates, and the ceiling too seemed to be getting lower with every step. As if she wasn't winded enough already from carrying the giant of a man around, her breath was now being drained away by the closed space.

"Just a little more," Ilia said, and Blake thought there was a hint of worry there. "You need a breather?"

"I'm okay," Blake said quietly, squaring her shoulders and trying to even out her breathing. Ilia must have detected something was wrong with her, and she definitely didn't need Ilia to think she was going to have a freak out. "You… You come around here a lot?"

Ilia looked her shoulder, her brow furrowed, as if she couldn't decide whether to be amused or offended. "No, I don't. Actually, I try to stay clear of dark, claustrophobic undergrounds tunnels whenever I can."

"Then how come you know the place?" Blake asked.

"My aunt lives here," Ilia answered, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "That entrance we took at the shorefront, that's just one of out of who knows how many. You can get in or out of these tunnels pretty much anywhere in the city, I think. It's a convenient place to know your way around."

"Can't be that safe," Blake said.

"I've run into a few weirdos. But people mostly keep to themselves down here. There _is_ a kinda unspoken rule to share information, but…" Ilia cut herself short. "Let's focus on what's important."

From that point on, Ilia didn't say a word except to warn Blake of any bumps or turns ahead of them. It seemed like she'd spoken more than she'd intended, and now she was determined to make up for that with an inscrutable silence. Blake was quite disappointed – the situation they were in was insane, but she'd at least found some comfort in hearing her old friend speak.

Ilia really did sound like her old self, when she wasn't breaking faces or threatening to run her over. Blake figured _that_ Ilia would be making a comeback soon, though.

"Here," Ilia said, stopping before a metal door on the wall to the right of them. She knocked on it a couple times and listened, then shrugged and kicked it open. "You first."

Blake stepped through the doorway, and felt a wave of relief wash over her as she came into a room as wide as a modest ballroom, with a height to put the church she slept in to shame. A few sparse beams of sunlight came down from a glass panel on the ceiling, but they wouldn't be there for long, with nightfall quickly approaching.

Between the ceiling and the floor, what looked like bridges extended from different elevations and points on the walls. Blake couldn't tell very well from below, but it looked like those lead to other underground tunnels.

"What the hell is this place, Ilia?" Blake asked.

Ilia locked the door with a hatch and walked over to her. "Beats me. But it's hard to find and there's room to move around. Plus, if we need to make a quick escape…"

"Wow. You really thought of everything, didn't you?"

"Your sarcasm is not appreciated, _Blake_."

Ilia walked over to the other end of the room and returned with a chair. She dropped it in the center of the room, right where the sun was currently shining, and gestured at it, a hard look on her face.

"Put him here."

Blake strengthened her hold on the Cleanser and pulled him closer. "What are you gonna do to him?"

"I'm gonna ask him some questions, that's all," Ilia said. When Blake didn't move, she turned her eyes to the ceiling and groaned. " _Or_ you can continue to hold him while I do my thing. Not my problem if you ruin your spine."

Reluctantly, Blake walked over to the chair and dropped the Cleanser on it. The chair's leg creaked dangerously under his weight, but fortunately, it did not give, even when his limbs sprawled out and he almost fell off. Ilia leaned over him – which, with their height difference, meant she was now level with his shoulder – and righted him on the chair, then tapped his cheek lightly with the back of her hand.

"Damnit, I overdid it," she muttered.

"What do you mean you overdid it?" Blake asked between stretching her back and neck. "You didn't leave him catatonic forever, did you?"

"No. But I don't know how long it will take for him to wake up. Could be hours," Ilia said. She stepped back, crossing her arms in irritation. "It's his fault for putting up a fight."

"Yeah, he really should have let you kidnap him in peace. Selfish jerk."

"Whatever, smartass," Ilia growled. "He's no use to me like this. We'll just have to wait until he can talk."

"And then?"

"And then, he'll talk."

Ilia put her hands on the pockets of her shorts and walked away, delving into the shadows of the room. She sat down and rested her back against a wall, and for a moment Blake saw her gray eyes staring at her from the darkness, before Ilia looked away sharply. Blake didn't blame her – she wasn't exactly comfortable with maintaining eye contact either.

Things had been tense between her and Ilia ever since she'd gotten on the car back at the police station – or even before that, when they'd laid eyes on one another in the parking lot. But between escaping the White Fang, and avoiding the police, and finding a safe place to hide… They had plenty of things to keep their minds occupied. It had made their temporary alliance tolerable.

But now there was no such excitement, and so they were left with nothing but silence, and each other's unignorable presence. And in that silence, Blake remembered why she'd gotten in that car in the first place. Not to protect the Cleanser who had murdered Fennec, though that was a reason too. No, she'd gotten in that car because of Ilia. Because of her friend.

A friend who was no longer her friend, who had all but declared that she hated her now. A friend who wanted her gone. And it would be easy to grant Ilia that wish. It might even be right thing to do. But Blake hadn't come all this way to give up because she felt afraid and uncomfortable and guilty and… all manners of feelings. She _couldn't_ give up now.

"So, while he's out of commission," Blake said quietly, walking over to Ilia and stopping before her. "Maybe _we_ could talk instead."

Ilia looked up at her, one knee drawn close to her torso with an arm over it, muscle and skin staunch with tension. "What gave you the impression that I want to talk?"

"Nothing," Blake said. "But I do."

"That's news," Ilia murmured. "You didn't use to be this talkative."

"Funny you say that. You didn't use to be such a hothead, either."

Ilia's glare got all the harsher, but Blake didn't let that deter her from carrying on the conversation. She sat down in front of Ilia, legs crossed.

"You were so gentle, before. I know I was always the quiet one, but…" Blake said. "Well, I wasn't very well-adjusted, was I?"

"Understatement of the century," Ilia muttered gruffly. "And you _still_ aren't, by the way."

"Right. I guess I only got worse, because you used to reign me in, remember? You were like an anchor of sorts. A voice of reason in the middle of all that madness." Blake said, and a pang of sadness hit her, even as she smiled. "I miss your cooking."

Ilia was quiet for a moment, before her lips quirked with the hint of a smile. "So do I. When was the last time you think I had the opportunity to cook something?"

"Heh. I know the feeling," Blake said. "I've been squatting in a church, did you know?"

"Not surprising. It fits your holier-than-thou attitude."

They shared a look, and a smile finally showed on Ilia's lips. Blake found herself returning it immediately, the easiest smile she'd had in weeks.

"What happened, Ilia?" Blake asked, and carefully lifted a hand and laid it on top of Ilia's arm, only to take it back in fright as she watched all of Ilia's good humor drain away in a heartbeat, her skin turning a vivid blue. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"It's none of your business." For a split second, Ilia turned bright red, and then she returned to her natural color, though she might as well be blue with the way she shrunk against the wall.

Blake dragged herself back, putting some distance between the two of them, and clasped her hands firmly on her lap. "You're right. It's not my business," she said. "But I want to know, Ilia. I need to. Please, don't keep me in the dark."

Ilia's lips parted to reveal her teeth, gritting so hard they might just shatter under the pressure, and her skin flashed with a dozen different colors, so fast Blake couldn't hope to keep up, much less extract any meaning from them. Finally, she returned to normal, and stayed that way.

"Goddamnit," she muttered, and looked at Blake in resignation.

Blake swallowed dry, the thought of backing off becoming very enticing once more. It would certainly be kinder to Ilia. But was kindness of that sort what either of them needed at the moment?

"Maybe just tell me about your powers first," Blake said hesitantly. "You weren't hiding them all along, were you?"

Ilia's chest rose and fell with a breath of relief, as if she were expecting something much worse. "No. I've had them for a while now," she said. "Five or six years, I'm not sure."

"So, around the time I…" Blake trailed off, shuddering at the realization that she'd almost brought up her leaving. She'd rather avoid that topic altogether, though she doubted that would be possible. "What do they do, exactly?"

Ilia raised her fist, and Blake searched for a glow, or any sort of alteration, but there was nothing unusual about it. "I shock people, except it's not really a shock. I don't know the science, but it's like I hit them, and it messes up their nerves or something. Just a punch is enough to paralyze most people. But some, like our guest over there, they take more of a beating to bring down for good. I guess it's something to do with size, or mass, or whatever," she said, and eyed Blake skeptically. "And I guess it must be even more difficult with people like you. Like _us_. Probably because of Aura."

"Yeah, but it still stings like hell, and it sends the world swirling around you. I can personally attest to that," Blake said. "It is probably some kind of shock, like you said. I don't know about you, but my Aura doesn't seem to shield me all that well from electricity in particular."

"I guess," Ilia said, and Blake got the impression she was only interested in the topic because it wasn't a hard matter to discuss.

"So, how did you get them?" Blake asked. "Did it just happen, or…?"

"Well, the scientists who experimented on you also experimented on me, if you haven't forgotten," Ilia said, in a tone that implied that _of course_ Blake had forgotten it. "Maybe the effects manifested later with me. Or maybe that had nothing to do with it. All I know is, one day I was normal, the next I wasn't."

The moment the last word had left her mouth, Ilia's eyes darted away from Blake, their shade of gray darkening ever so slightly. She wasn't telling the full story, that much was obvious, but Blake knew better than to press her.

"Okay," Blake said, nodding agreeably. "So, what have you been up to these last six years?"

"Blake, don't treat me like I'm stupid. You _know_ what I've been doing," Ilia said, the glare returning to her eyes. "Unless you're gonna tell me it wasn't you that snuck into my place and went through my things."

"To be fair, you weren't paying for that hotel room, so…" Blake shrugged apologetically. "I needed to find you."

"You _didn't_. You just thought you did," Ilia said, and took a deep breath before she spoke again. "How did you even find out where I was hiding? You weren't _stalking_ me, I hope?"

"No. You didn't leave a fraction of a trail to be followed, if that's any comfort," Blake said. "Someone texted me the address and room."

"Someone _who_?"

"I don't know. They just texted me out of the blue."

"So you trusted a complete stranger, just like that. Brilliant." Ilia's eyebrows rose in wonder. "And here I thought you couldn't get any crazier."

Blake frowned. There was no defense to her methods, and she knew it. She'd been so desperate to find any trace of Ilia that she'd acted without any consideration and care, and that had almost gotten Pearl killed. It _had_ gotten Fennec killed.

"So, you know what I know. That means you can explain what I found, because I'm still so confused," Blake said. "You've been hunting people down? People like _him_?" She raised her thumb over her shoulder, pointing at the paralyzed Cleanser.

" _He_ is barely a person. Same with all the others before him," Ilia said coldly. "Him and his ilk, _they_ hunt down faunus, any faunus, and torture them, kill them. They're worse than animals, worse than Grimm-"

"I know. Cleansers," Blake interrupted. "You're not the only one who's been chasing them."

Ilia shifted uneasily, her lips parted in surprise. "I should have guessed you already knew."

"I only found out about them recently. The same day we, ah, _met_ in that house, actually," Blake said. "But it sounds like you've known about them for much longer than that. Right?"

Ilia gave no response, her eyes once again wandering away from Blake as she grew sullen. She'd pulled her arm away from her knee, and now both her hands were on the ground to the sides of her, tracing meaningless figures in the dust with a meager, restless energy.

"Ilia," Blake said breathily. "Talk to me. Whatever you need to say. You can trust me."

Ilia's throat bobbed with discomfort. Her eyes returned to Blake, but they went through her, gazing into something invisible, intangible, and with every drawn-out second the despair on her face solidified, until she seemed to be wearing a mask of abject terror.

"I waited for you to come back," Ilia's voice came as a whisper. "A long time. I waited a long time."

Blake rubbed her throat, feeling like a rock had been dropped inside her, and it had slowly sunk, all the way down to the bottom of her stomach. "I'm sorry. I-"

"Don't bother. It's not about you."

Blake fell into silence, taken aback by the absolute lack of anger, _of anything_ , in Ilia's voice. It would have been easier to be yelled at.

"I kept waiting, even when I realized you had left for good. I didn't know what else to do but wait," Ilia said. "But then Adam came back, when he was supposed to be dead. And then he started talking about forming a true White Fang, and taking revenge against the humans… Against _you_. And I knew I didn't want to have anything to do with any of that, so finally, I left."

"I wandered around for a while, living like we did when we were kids, except I was alone. I was… I was in a daze, still, I think." Ilia's eyes narrowed slightly, and her voice regained the tiniest bit of its former ardor. "I was being a child, stupid and weak. When I realized that nobody was going to come and save me, I decided to turn things around myself. So I headed home, to my parents."

Blake's eyes widened in surprise. Ilia's parents, of course. She hadn't even considered their existence until now. The surprise wore off quickly, though, with a sense of foreboding almost immediately taking its place.

"I crossed the desert. It was tough, but I survived." Ilia paused, her lips quivering. "I got there, and I found out they were dead."

Blake barely kept herself in place, remembering how Ilia had reacted to her touch before. Still, the urge to reach forward and take Ilia in her arms, to hold her close and tell her everything was okay – it took an otherworldly strength to restrain herself.

"The worst part was, they had died barely a week before I got there. A mine accident. Them and seven other faunus, buried under tons of rock, earth, and volatile Dust," Ilia said. "There weren't even any bodies to be retrieved."

"Ilia, I'm so sorry…" Blake said. She knew it meant less than nothing, but she couldn't watch Ilia's sorrow and stay silent.

"Thank you." Ilia rubbed her nose with the back of her hand, muffling a sniff, then continued, her lips pursed. "I was heartbroken. My hopes were all crushed. I didn't know what to do with myself. And then _they_ showed up."

In an instant, Ilia's entire demeanor changed, her skin turning crimson and the shade of her hair darkening to match it. Even her eyes changed, going from gray to an opaque blue, like the color of the sky on a stormy day.

"They?" Blake asked apprehensively, feeling a tingling on her neck, in the direction of their captive Cleanser.

" _Them_ ," Ilia intoned harshly. "Four human men. They told me they knew what had happened at the mine, that it hadn't been just an accident. The faunus workers, my parents included, had been fighting for better wages and working conditions. They'd just gone off strike, and a day later, the section of the mine they were working on collapsed around them. It wasn't a coincidence."

"They were killed, to silence them," Blake said, the thought repulsing her. "To set an example."

"Exactly," Ilia said, nodding. "And those men, they told me they knew who was behind it, and that they would help me get justice for my parents. They lured me to the edge of town, and… Well, I'm sure you've connected the dots already."

"Cleansers." Blake frowned. "Ilia… What happened…?"

"They tried to kill me, obviously. And they almost did. But then _this_ happened." Ilia raised a fist. "Suddenly, they couldn't hurt me, but oh, I could hurt them. So I beat them to the ground, and I made them tell me everything they knew, which wasn't much. They were just muscled idiots, the lowest of the low." Her lips curved in a cruel smile. "When they had nothing left to say, I broke their teeth, and then I left them to bleed in the sand."

Stunned into silence, Blake could only stare at Ilia. She searched Ilia's eyes for regret, or even defensiveness, the slightest hint of anything that might suggest that Ilia wasn't the monster she painted herself to be, but there was nothing like that to be found.

"And since then, you've been… tracking down the Cleansers, one by one," Blake said shakily. "And…" She trailed off, unable – _unwilling_ – to complete her train of thought.

"And killing them?" Ilia said, raising her chin. "You don't have to skirt around the issue. Is that what you think I've been doing all these years, Blake?"

Blake drew up her knees, making herself small before Ilia. "I don't know."

Possessed of new energy, Ilia stood up and strode past Blake, stopping to face the Cleanser from a distance. Her fists were clenched at her sides, and if Blake strained her ears, she could swear she heard the slightest buzzing coming from them.

"I haven't killed anyone. Not as far as I know, anyway," Ilia said, spitting every word out like they were venom. "This guy, and all the others before him, they're just cockroaches. Stomp on one, the next day you find another crawling around the same corner. Just a waste of time and energy." She raised a finger and whirled it significantly in the air. "No, there's just one man who needs to die. The one above all the rest. The ringleader. Sooner or later, one his lackeys will give him up, and then he's done."

"You think killing their leader will stop them? Ilia, that just seems…" Blake paused, considering her words. "It all sounds like a justification."

"Is that so?" Ilia said in mock wonderment. "Well, if my plan doesn't suffice, if they just keep doing what they do, then I'll have to start working my way down the ranks. They'll get the message, sooner or later."

Blake rose to her feet and looked at Ilia, and in her dismay and pity, she could think of nothing else to do but to grasp her by the wrist and pull her into a hug. She realized what she was doing a second too late, but as she made to pull away, she was surprised to find that Ilia wasn`t protesting at all – she seemed, in fact, to be melting into the embrace. Blake let herself believe she wasn't just imagining things, and drew Ilia closer, shuddering in the warmth herself.

"I'm sorry. I should have never left you," Blake said, just barely finding her voice. "I should have been there for you. If I had been, then maybe…"

"You could have saved me?" Ilia completed the thought for her, and Blake braced herself for her anger. "You're probably right."

"I… I am?" Blake stepped back, looking at Ilia in astonishment.

"Well, yes. It's only logical," Ilia near-whispered. "I wouldn't have felt the need to go home with you by my side. And if we did go there, things certainly wouldn't have gone the same way." She looked away, and Blake saw a glimmer of tears in her eyes. "I just needed someone. I needed _you_."

"I wanted to come back to you," Blake said. "But it was just too dangerous, for both of us."

She made to hug Ilia again, but Ilia swatted her hands away, and still with mere inches between them, stared up at Blake with an uncertain combination of anger and sadness.

"Was it too dangerous, Blake?" she asked, her words leaving her lips like a hiss. "More dangerous than chasing after Sienna when you knew she wanted you dead? More dangerous than flying to the other side of the world to fight Adam and Cinder Fall?"

"That's different," Blake said. "The whole White Fang hated me then, Ilia. I couldn't put you through that. It was safer for both of-"

"I don't care how you justify it, you still abandoned me!" Ilia shouted, and breathed in sharply. "How many times did I tell you, Blake, that I all I needed was for us to stay together? I didn't _care_ how dangerous it was, what we had to go through, because it didn't matter! What more did I need to say for you to understand, Blake? Did I need to get on my fucking knees for you to take me seriously, or- or-"

Her words devolved into a grunt, a furious noise that made Blake's chest rumble, and then without warning, Ilia swung a hand at her. Blake stumbled back, holding her shoulder as a faint numbness spread from it, running down her arm and nearly leaving it limp.

It didn't hurt. Not like Ilia's words did.

"I don't…" She tried to say something, anything, but a coherent sentence was beyond her every effort. "I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything," Ilia said, and all the anger and sadness washed away from her face, as if she was too tired to feel anything that great anymore. "I wish I could just be angry with you. And, in part, I am. But I can't force myself. I had convinced myself you just didn't care about me, but I think you do. Even after all these years."

"I do care about you, Ilia," Blake said. "How could I not?"

"Yeah. Just not enough. Look what it took for you to finally come find me." Ilia gestured hopelessly at their surroundings. "If I knew all it would take for you to notice me was a little violence, I would have started breaking faces ages ago."

"This… is probably _not_ the kind of attention you want from me, Ilia," Blake noted.

"Yeah. But you're here, aren't you?" Ilia shrugged. "I think there's something seriously wrong with you, Blake. You won't think twice about running into danger, but anything else – anything remotely good – you run away from." She crossed her arms, giving Blake a meaningful look. "Have you looked for your parents at all?"

Blake shook her head mutely.

"Now, if _they_ started beating up people, then you wouldn't waste a second."

It stung, how right Ilia was. Blake couldn't help but think back of what Sienna had said to her – that all she was was _scared_ – and how true those words had rung then, and how true Ilia's words rung now. She was always running, because running was all she knew.

"Well, I can't fix your problems, and you can't fix mine," Ilia said. "But we're here anyway, so I guess we'll just have to deal with being messed up together."

She walked over to the Cleanser and looked down at him, that resolute anger returning to her face.

"I'll warn you when he wakes up. And then…" Ilia cracked her knuckles. "We'll see where we go from there."

* * *

Sienna gritted her teeth, the only thing she could do to stifle the shaking that had taken over her body, and only minimally at that. She'd made the mistake of trying to move her leg, thinking that somehow there would be no issue with that. She'd gotten so used to how her meds subdued the pain, she'd forgotten it was still actually there.

And God, was it terrible. She wondered if it wouldn't have been easier if she'd lost the entire leg entirely. It was an awful thought, she knew, but the feeling of the metal pins and plates on her limb, and the swollen flesh around them, and the fire in her nerves… It was all too much to bear. Maybe, just maybe, an emptiness of feeling would have been preferable.

A wiser part of her knew, however, that whichever way things might have gone, she'd probably be bemoaning her fate all the same.

It was over. Not everything, of course. The world would keep spinning, regardless of what happened to her. No, it was only the great Sienna Khan that was coming to an end today. How could she go on after this? Crippled; fear and mistrust the only sentiments she could afford to nurture. The world had looked upon her hopes and wishes and made a mockery of them. It was clear what it was trying to tell her.

Perhaps this was the ending she deserved. She supposed it was only fair that she got what was coming to her, after everything she'd done.

She lied back on her bed, crossed her arms over her chest, and shut her eyes tight. There was nothing left for her to do but sleep, excruciating pain and all. She had about resigned herself to that, when the door to her room opened, and someone came in with heavy steps, stopping just beside her bed.

Sienna opened her eyes, and for a moment, her heart exploded with joy and relief – and then she realized who the brown eyes that stared down at her belonged to, and she retreated back to the confines of her mind, where only sorrow and bitterness kept her company.

"Corsac," she managed to say, her voice but a croak. "I told you to let me rest."

"I'm so very sorry, High Leader, but," Corsac spoke urgently, apparently not noticing the slip of his tongue. "Something's come up. Great – I suppose great news. I must show you."

He didn't allow her the time to protest, bringing his phone out and showing it to her. His fingers were trembling so badly it made it difficult to decipher what was on the screen, and with the apathy that riddled her, she had to stare at it for nearly a minute before understanding dawned on her.

"What… what is this?" she asked, sure that she was seeing things – things she wanted to see, things she wanted to be true. "Explain this to me, Corsac. My – my head is killing me, please."

Corsac pulled the phone away from her face a little, and she could now more clearly see the picture he presented to her.

Councilman Cobalt. And the monster who had killed Fennec. Sitting on the same table, surrounded by a dozen other men.

" _Corsac_ ," she implored, her headache spiking – a pain unrelated to her leg, this time.

"It's him. We knew it all along, and we were right," Corsac grunted. "Cobalt killed my brother. He put you in this hospital." He took back his phone and swiped at it, his fingers clumsy with excitement. "Listen!"

He tapped the screen, and from the speakers came a familiar voice – Cobalt's. " _I can trust you to take care of it, then? I can't have this going sideways. And it has to be done today._ "

" _Yes. You don't have anything to worry about, sir,_ " another voice replied. " _You know my reputation._ "

" _Of course. Forgive me for doubting you. I just can't wait for – well_." Cobalt's voice faded, only to return a few seconds later. " _Just make sure she's wearing that accursed smile. The gall of that beast, to look at me like that. The entire world will soon see how hollow that smile really is._ "

The audio ended, and Corsac put away his phone. "This is all over the news," he said, and looked at her anxiously. "High Leader?"

Sienna sat up, ignoring how her pain flared. Her fingers were twitching, but she didn't mind. She was imagining them closing around a certain someone's throat.

"I'll kill the bastard myself," she said, loud and clear. "I swear to God, Corsac. And if you try to stop me-"

"I would never," Corsac said, and paced closer to her eagerly. "I've already made arrangements, High Leader. The White Fang will rise in your name once more. But first…" He looked towards the door, then back at her. "We have to get you out of here. This place isn't safe anymore."

"No, it isn't. All bets are off now," she said, turning so her legs dangled off the bed, and cringed at the pain. "Get me a wheelchair. And some proper clothes." She paused. "And a cane. I want a goddamn cane."

"I'm afraid you won't be walking for a while still, High Leader," Corsac said, taking a glance at her leg.

"I don't care what you think. I'm gonna walk and that's the end of it," Sienna said. "Besides, a cane makes for a very satisfactory weapon in a pinch."

Corsac lingered beside the bed for a moment, his expression cautiously doubtful, before he nodded and went to the corner of the room to retrieve a wheelchair.

"I've secured a path to my car, but we must move fast," he said. "I'll take you to one of the hideouts. We can make plans there."

"Can't we just drive to the bastard's home already? Knock down this door, make a show of it," Sienna said, itching to get back on her feet. "I'm gonna beat the shit out of him. And I'll make sure to _smile_ just before the end."

"It's good that you're eager, High Leader," Corsac said. "But prudence must come first. The time will come for revenge."

"Bloody whatever. Take however much time you want, just don't take what I deserve away from me!" Sienna exclaimed. "I'll let you have a turn with him. There, will that get you to get a move on? I'm gonna _explode_ if you don't take me away from-"

The sound of the door dragging against the floor interrupted her, and she turned to see Pearl peering into the room, a worried look in her eyes.

"Sienna?" She walked inside, steps unsure. "I was about to tell you, but… I guess you already know." She glanced at Corsac, and her expression went from cautious to disapproving. "What's going on here? Where are you going?"

"Corsac is getting me out of this hospital," Sienna said, and after a moment's consideration, added, "We're gonna kill Cobalt."

"You're gonna _what_?" Pearl cried. "You can't be serious. You're gonna _kill_ someone? You can't just – what about the elections, and your campaign, and everything-"

"Forget about it. I don't care about any of that anymore," Sienna said. "All that matters is that Cobalt pays."

"Yeah? What about _me_ , then?" Pearl asked.

Sienna noticed the young girl's chin was trembling, and an awful sense of guilt settled on her shoulders, and for a moment she forgot all about her rage and pain.

"I'm… I'm sorry," she said. "I can't take you with me, Pearl."

"I don't _want_ you to take me anywhere," Pearl spat. "I want you to stay and come to your senses!" Her eyes wavered, and she looked away. "Just don't _abandon_ me."

Sienna looked at Corsac, and he shook his head at her. She reprimanded him with a frown, then turned to Pearl and beckoned her closer.

"Listen, Pearl. I can't convince you to be on my side on this. I _won't_ ," Sienna said, putting a hand on Pearl's shoulder. "But I won't just leave you. You're still important to me. So… we'll bring you along to the hideout, and I'll see about finding someone to help you out, get you a proper home, a proper family, everything you could ever need and more. That's a promise. Okay?"

"You make lots of promises," Pearl whispered, and from the look in her eyes, Sienna could tell she hated her right now. "Fine. And then I don't wanna have anything to do with you."

Sienna nodded, and Pearl went to sit on the bench on the hallway outside, her head bowed low. Corsac cleared his throat, then silently rolled the wheelchair over to the bed. Sienna glared at him.

"You're forgetting the cane."

* * *

The silence was broken by the creaking of wood. Blake looked up, startled, and noticed that Ilia too was on alert, hunched over the Cleanser with a hopeful look in her eyes.

"He's coming to," Ilia said. "Finally."

Blake pushed herself to her feet and walked over to Ilia and the Cleanser, standing far enough away so as to not irritate the chameleon-faunus, but close enough that she could interfere in a second's notice if anything went wrong.

She watched anxiously as the man awakened to his senses in full, shifting in the chair, his arms and legs moving in slow, sweeping motions, like he was using them for the first time. He looked up, first at Ilia, and his shoulders squared, and then at Blake. His weary, panicked eyes wavered, and he inched forward-

"Try anything, and you'll get this again," Ilia said suddenly, waving her fist in front of his face. "Lay a finger on her, and I'll break it. Got it, big guy?"

The Cleanser hung back, grunting uncomfortably as he stared at her fist.

"Here's how this is gonna go. I'm gonna ask some questions, and you're gonna answer them. If you don't, I'm gonna hit you, and you know what that means," Ilia said. "And don't try to get me angry and worm your way out of this. I know how to use my power just enough to make it hurt, but not knock you out. And since I'm not currently in a police precinct with a bunch of racist gunmen breathing down my neck, I don't think I'm gonna be making any unfortunate mistakes." She looked him up and down, then gestured at his mouth. "Nod yes if you understand."

He nodded, and Ilia hummed contently. She seemed cheerful, almost, and Blake couldn't tell whether that was part of an act or if she was just enjoying herself that much. Either possibility was highly distressing.

Ilia looked over her shoulder at Blake, as if detecting her discomfort. "I take it you're not gonna be joining me, Blake?"

Blake looked at the Cleanser and swallowed dry. "I _really_ hate this, Ilia."

"Yup, as I thought." Ilia put her hands on her hips, a slight frown adorning her forehead. "Well, you don't have to stay and watch. It's okay if you wanna leave."

"It's not the watching that upsets me, Ilia," Blake said. "It's your doing it."

Ilia sighed, then turned back to the Cleanser, her expression hardening again.

"First question," she said. "What's your name?"

His face twitched, but not a word left his mouth.

"Look, this is gonna go easier for both of us if you just talk like I'm asking you to," Ilia said. "I know you're not mute. So drop the silent act and start answering my questions."

The Cleanser looked at her for a moment, then bowed his head, as if disinterested. He didn't seem afraid anymore. Perhaps he had accepted his fate, whichever way it went.

Blake shifted her weight between her feet. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was something off about this man. Something beside the murderous tendencies and the refusal to speak, that is.

"Alright, so don't tell me your name. It's not important anyway," Ilia said, rolling her eyes. "But you're gonna tell me who ordered you to kill Sienna Khan. So." She leaned forward, her nose almost brushing against his. "Who do you work for?"

The Cleanser didn't move, didn't so much as look at Ilia. Blake doubted he was even listening to her anymore.

" _Okay_. Here comes the nasty part, then," Ilia said, shaking her head. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

She lifted a hand, curled her fingers until her knuckles went white, and brought it down on the man's sternum. He rocked in the chair, his feet launching from below him while his head lolled backwards – before he lurched back into a sitting position, his limbs quaking with miniature spasms.

"Who do you work for?"

Ilia waited, the scowl on her face becoming more genuine with each second of silence that passed. "Anything? You're not going to say _anything_?" she said, pacing closer to him. "You're seriously gonna force my hand with this. You realize you're just making things harder for yourself? Because I have _no problem_ beating you into a puddle, if that's what it takes."

She stared down at him for a moment, then suddenly grabbed hold of his collar.

"Unless you don't believe me, that is. Maybe that's the problem here," she said. "I'll just have to convince you, then."

She pulled back her other hand, bringing it into an angle where there was only thing she could be possibly aiming for. Blake's breath caught in her throat as she wondered how it feel to take a punch from Ilia directly to the nose. If taking one to the shoulder, with her Aura to soften it too, was bad enough to render that side of her torso numb…

She felt dizzy just thinking about it.

"Who. Do. You. Work. For?"

Blake noticed Ilia's arm tensing an instant before she would strike down, and with two haphazard steps she closed the distance between them and grabbed Ilia's wrist. She tugged as hard as she could to negate the momentum of the interrupted swing, and they both went floundering backwards, Ilia almost tumbling to the floor before Blake caught her and centered her back on her feet.

"What the hell, Blake!" Ilia pushed her away, her skin red like blood. "What the hell do you think you're doing? You think you can just interrupt me like that?!"

Blake reeled back, struck by shame that she'd disrupted Ilia's plan and caused her such anger – before the reality of the situation caught up with her, and she straightened her back, standing a head taller than Ilia.

"What do you _think_ I'm doing, Ilia?" she said, summoning every ounce of anger to her voice to match Ilia's. "I'm not going to let you beat a man senseless right in front of my eyes. This is wrong. Beyond wrong. It's straight up evil!"

"Evil?" Ilia repeated, indignant. " _Evil_ is what this guy did to Fennec Albain, and Sienna, and what he could have done – what he almost did to _you_!"

"I don't care what he did or didn't do," Blake said. "You are way out of line right now. You're worse than him!"

"Worse than-" Ilia shut her mouth, squaring her jaw, and turned away from Blake. "Well, if what it takes to stop him and his ilk is to sink down to their level, then that's what I'll do. Someone has to."

She started walking back to the Cleanser, but Blake grabbed her shoulder, stopping her.

"You know who you sound like?" Blake said. "You sound like Adam. Exactly like him."

Ilia froze, and Blake could practically feel the fury radiating off of her in waves. "You are not comparing me to Adam right now. You are _not_."

"Why shouldn't I? He didn't care about the consequences of his actions either. As long as it hurt humans, everything was fair game," Blake said. "How are you acting any differently than him right now?"

"Because I'm not doing this to hurt people," Ilia said. "I'm doing this to stop _them_ …" She pointed at the Cleanser. "…from hurting anyone else. Because, and I'm sorry if this makes you feel _uncomfortable_ , Blake, the only way to stop them is to _stop them for good_."

"There are better ways," Blake said. "Ways that don't involve beating people into comas."

"Oh, really? Then please enlighten me. I'm sure you're full of ideas."

 _Sienna_ , the answer came running to the tip of Blake's tongue, and she stopped it just short of escaping her lips. She reeled in confusion. How had Sienna's plan come to her as such an obvious solution, when that was just the thing she'd been trying to foil until just last night?

"Right. You don't know," Ilia said, snapping her out of her thoughts. Her shoulders slumped, and Blake could almost see the anger evaporating off her just as the red faded from her skin. "I don't like doing this, Blake. And I know it's a slippery slope. But that's the important part – I _know_. Adam didn't. Or if he did, he just didn't care." She paused, her eyes wavering as she looked up at Blake. "You see how it's different, right?"

"I… Yes," Blake said slowly. It was becoming hard to breathe, and she could feel a lightness in her back of her head. The sensation reminded her of something…

It reminded her of the hospital, just a few hours ago.

"I shouldn't have compared you to Adam," she managed to say, somehow. "I'm sorry, Ilia."

"That's okay," Ilia said quietly. Her eyes slipped back to the Cleanser, and her posture hardened again – though she was a far cry from the menacing creature she'd become before, or Blake perceived her so, at least. "I'm gonna try and get him to speak, now. You can…" She looked back towards where they'd come from.

"I'll stay," Blake said.

"You're sure?" Ilia asked, raising an eyebrow. "You're not gonna try and stop me again, are you?"

_You're so afraid of doing wrong, you never do anything at all, and the world keeps crumbling around you…_

"I'm sure." Blake took a deep breath. "Do what you've gotta do."

Ilia watched her for a moment, then returned to the Cleanser, her hands on her hips. She tilted her head to the side, as if deep in thought, and while she did so, Blake noticed that the Cleanser had changed somehow. He seemed more aware, sitting nearly straight on his chair, and his eyes went from her to Ilia with… curiosity, was Blake's best guess

He disturbed her now more than ever, she realized.

And then he spoke.

"You hide what you really are," his voice was raspy and drawn-out, from tiredness, or a lack of use, or both. His eyes had fixed on Blake as he spoke, and every other part of his body had come to a standstill. "Has that made life easier for you?"

Ilia looked back at Blake, her eyes wide. Blake could do nothing but stare back, just as confused.

"You are burdened by a great purpose," the Cleanser said, slowly turning his head towards Ilia. "Has it lessened the pain? Has it made up for any of it?"

Ilia stepped back, shocked, only to come at the man again a second later, grabbing him with both hands. "Alright, I've had enough of your nonsense. If you're gonna talk, it's gonna be to answer my questions. No games, you hear me? Say some shit like that again and I'm gonna-"

Blake tuned Ilia out, her ears perking up under her bow as they picked up a strange sound somewhere above – a break in the heavy silence, between the water that dripped from the walls and the wind that snuck in from the glass panels on the ceiling – a light step on stone – a clink of something metallic.

"Ilia," Blake said, and Ilia immediately turned away from the Cleanser, startled by the seriousness of her voice. "Listen."

Silently, Blake pointed a finger upward, and they both looked towards the ceiling. Blake scoured the darkness with her eyes, tracing the length of every stone bridge above them, looking towards the myriad of tunnels anyone could come in from, until finally, she saw two brown irises staring back at her.

She heard the cocking of a gun, and barely had the time to shout a warning before a hail of bullets descended on her. A few bullets hit her before she could find cover behind a pillar, but they were nothing her Aura couldn't protect her from. "Ilia, get him out of-"

"Already did!" came Ilia's shout, and the Cleanser fell beside Blake holding his stomach, as if it'd just been kicked. Ilia's efficiency was something to be commended.

Blake tried to peek out from behind the pillar, only to retreat as the number of bullets grew, disintegrating the stone where they hit the pillar. She was lucky the structure was solid, or she'd have been in much more trouble.

She looked up and realized the shooting was coming from multiple directions now, higher and lower and from different bridges. More shooters. Probably White Fang. She couldn't imagine the police would do something like this.

Well, she could, but it was unlikely.

"Ilia?" she called out, starting to worry. "Where are you?"

As if to answer her, a masked faunus crashed near the pillar, his mask flying off his face at the moment of impact. Blake followed the trajectory of his fall from one of the bridges and noticed the dark shape that ran across it towards another gunman – Ilia, hidden by her chameleon skin.

"Well, she seems to be handling things alright," Blake said, pressing her back against the pillar. She looked down at the Cleanser, but as expected, he gave her no comment. Still, she didn't need him to say anything for her to feel guilty. "Damnit. Stay here!"

She unwrapped her ribbon from around her arm and combined it with her blade, then threw it as she jumped out of cover. The fabric wrapped around the lowest bridge once before the blade locked into the stone. With a hop and a pull, Blake went flying, soaring past the bridge and onto the next one above it, kicking a grunt into a wall and knocking him out cold.

With a practiced flick of her wrist, Blake pulled her blade back to her hand, then studied the gunfire coming from above, deciding on her next target. As she did, Ilia appeared beside her, pulling herself over the edge of the bridge with a heave. She only noticed Blake was there once she was on her feet, and her expression appeared at the same time confused and impressed.

"How the hell did you get up here so fast?"

Too preoccupied to answer that properly, Blake threw her blade again, and after making sure it had secured properly to the bridge above, swung herself over to it. Her feet had barely hit stone when a burst of bullets came from a tunnel opening in front of her. She avoided it by a hair's width by leaning to the side, then jumped off the bridge altogether and, still hanging onto her ribbon, swung under it and back up, launching herself at her attacker with a punch that sent him sprawling out.

She took cover in the tunnel, and a few moments later, Ilia joined her, a frown on her forehead.

"That doesn't make any sense. None of it does," Ilia grumbled. "That's gotta be another superpower of yours, right?"

"Can we worry less about how I do things," Blake said. "And more about how these people found and ambushed us?"

"Someone must have ratted us out," Ilia said simply. "We did get pretty loud there for a moment." She glared at Blake. "And _no_ , it wasn't mostly me."

"Well we can't afford to stay here much longer. This place is compromised," Blake said. "We clear these guys out, and then we run. Sorry, Ilia, I think your interrogation plan is a bust at this point."

Ilia was silent for a moment, looking out of the tunnel with a conflicted expression on her face. "Okay. You're probably right," she said finally, notably calm, all things considered. "There's only a handful of these idiots left, but they're gonna be getting back-up any minute now, I'll bet. We gotta be fast."

"Right," Blake said, stepping out of cover. "I'll go for the ones at the top, you-"

The air was robbed from her lungs mid-sentence as a foot slammed on her belly, and suddenly she was falling, falling, falling towards the ground ever closer, a figure following her and accelerating her descent-

She hit the ground and lost her breath for good. Her vision went black for a moment, and when it returned, she saw a man above her, his angular face looking down at her with accusing eyes. Black bat-like wings sprouted from his back, their fearsome width shielding most of the room from her sight.

"You've hurt the last of us, traitor!" he exclaimed, and swung a punch at her face. Stunned as she was, Blake had no opportunity to react, and her skull bounced against the stones.

Somewhere above her, Ilia screamed, but the ringing in her ears was too great, as was the persistent gunfire. Still, she could swear it was her name that Ilia was shouting.

The bat faunus swung again, but this time Blake managed to dodge his attack by rolling to the side. She pushed herself up, only to go stumbling forward as a foot clashed against the small of her back. She hit a pillar and pushed herself away, swinging her blade blindly – except she was now realizing she'd lost it in the fall.

Blake stilled her breath, carefully backstepping as the man advanced on her. Without a weapon, and with her senses still thrown off, she had no hope to put a fight. The only option, then, was to buy time and wait for Ilia to come to her rescue. The gunfire had already stopped, which meant that Ilia had already disposed of the rest of the enemy forces. She'd come down any moment now…

But for all her preparation, Blake still failed to do her part. As the bat swung a low punch at her belly, she attempted to make a shadow clone, but her strength and her focus failed midway through, and she fell to her knees, gasping for air and feeling a raw pain spread throughout her body. Her Aura was gone.

"End of the line, pet," the man said, stopping before her. "This one is for Trifa, and High Leader Taurus. Rot in-"

Before he could finish, two huge hands wrapped around his neck, and he was hoisted backwards off his feet. He went swinging through the air, wings useless against the sudden movement, and then he hit the floor, head-first, and lay silent, unmoving.

The Cleanser stared at Blake for a moment, then put his hands on his head and stomped away to a corner, trembling madly.

"Blake!" Ilia dropped beside Blake, leaning in to inspect her. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry, I tried to come as fast as I could but…"

She stopped talking when she noticed the Cleanser on the corner, and then the felled bat faunus, and the dots connected in her mind.

"Wait, what?" she mumbled. "Blake, what's-"

Suddenly, the Cleanser screamed.

Or rather, he roared. A powerful, terrifying, positively non-human, roar.

He shambled out of the corner, looking at his fingers as if something was terribly wrong with them, and began to weep hoarsely.

Ilia fell to her knees beside Blake, her hands flying to her mouth as she struggled with the revelation unraveling in front of her eyes.

"Blake?" she said, her voice scarily small. "Blake, is he a…? He can't be…"

Blake swallowed dry. She could barely afford to make the connection herself. But it couldn't be clearer. "He's a faunus."

Ilia made a strangled noise. She lowered her hands to her knees, staring at them in horror. She was in the verge of a severe breakdown. Blake realized that, but she was unable to care as her mind quickly made leaps and realizations.

Shrugging off the pain, Blake rose to her feet and repeated the question Ilia had been so adamant about before.

"Who do you work for?"

* * *

"I think we can overwhelm him," Sienna said, tapping her fingers against the car window to distract herself from the pain of her leg. "So he has his cronies from the police and the Cleansers – he's still outnumbered. And he can't be drawing too much attention to himself right now, with his true face becoming public."

She pursed her lips. It was easy to put aside her rage when her mind was occupied with planning and tactics, but she still felt a need to punch something whenever she thought of Cobalt. What she wouldn't give to be in the same room as him right now…

"We have the advantage. There's no possible way he can stand up against the whole White Fang," she said, gritting her teeth. "But we can't afford to waste time. The longer we wait, the more prepared he'll be. He's an asshole, but he's not dumb. He knows I'm coming for him." She allowed herself a smirk. "Good. It'll make it all the sweeter."

"I'll have gathered a sizeable army by dawn at the latest," Corsac said, keeping his eyes on the road. "Should we take out the Schnee weapons?"

"You still have those?" Sienna asked, mildly surprised. "I thought I'd told you to ship them to the northern branches."

"For use against the Grimm, I remember. And I did send away most of them," Corsac said. "But I kept a few here in the city for just such an occasion. Surely, you understand?"

Sienna blew the air from the nose. "I can't be mad," she said. "Well, what Cobalt lacks in men, he'll surely make up for in firepower. So, yes, take out the big guns. We're gonna need them to level the playing field and keep casualties low."

Corsac nodded and spun the steering wheel, taking them on a sharp turn. The road they were on was of beaten stone with no illumination to guide them. If it weren't for the car's headlights, they would have veered off the road a long time ago and most likely crashed against a tree. They'd elected to take a route through the fringes of the city to avoid being seen or stopped. Still, Sienna was struggling to think which hideout Corsac was taking them to. It had been a long time since she'd visited the White Fang personally.

She'd need to rectify that. But later.

Whatever _later_ entailed.

"So, we surround his house. We take out his guards," she said, bringing a fist down on the palm of her hand. "And then you get me inside."

"I still don't like that idea," Corsac said bitterly. "But if you insist…"

"He needs to pay for what he did," Sienna hissed. "And I need to be the one to do it. It's only right."

"I won't argue against that," Corsac said. "What I worry about is if you'll be able to pull through with it."

"I'm not an invalid, Corsac," Sienna said. "I'd like to think I can still break an old fart's neck. Or if not that, I can certainly pull a trigger."

"It's not your physical state I'm worried about, High Leader."

Sienna turned on him, torn between shock and anger. How could Corsac doubt her so, when she was _burning_ inside with the desire to spill Cobalt's blood? As if a ruined leg wasn't enough motivation, could Corsac really be thinking she'd forgotten about his brother? It wasn't only herself she had to avenge.

"You two make me sick." Sitting in the back, Pearl broke the silence before Sienna could. "You realize you're talking about a man's life, right?"

Sienna looked back at the girl, scowling. "A murderer's life. A murderer who had Fennec and hundreds other faunus killed," she said. "For all we know, he could be behind your boyfriend's murder too."

"You- don't you use Damien's death against me!" Sienna exclaimed. "Nothing you can say will change the fact that what you're gonna do is wrong! You're not avenging anyone, you're not bringing some kinda justice to the world. You're just gonna _kill_ a man. That's it, and nothing else!"

Sienna looked back at the dark road, wracking her brain for a way to counter Pearl's argument, before she deflated and shook her head. "You're absolutely right. I'm going to kill Cobalt, and that's all there is to it."

"Because he deserves it?" Pearl scoffed. "And you don't? Like you've never hurt anyone before."

"Then I deserve the same fate," Sienna said. "Anyone's welcome to try and kill me after. Plenty have tried before."

Through the rearview, Sienna saw Pearl shrink in the backseat, the fire in her eyes fading. A pang of pity and regret hit Sienna, but she shrugged it off, as best as she could. There was no room for doubt now.

"I thought you meant everything you were saying before, about making a better Vacuo for everyone," Pearl said quietly. "But here you are, throwing all of that away. Why can't you just let this Cobalt business go? I hate him too, but, if we just let the right people take care of him…"

"Who, the police? The courts?" Sienna smiled sadly. "That man wouldn't see the inside of a jail cell if he killed someone in live television. What makes you think he won't bribe and blackmail himself out of this mess?"

"I don't know. But how are things supposed to change if we don't give them a chance to?" Pearl asked. "We can't just give up on everything. We need to fight for what we believe in!"

"Pearl… The campaign was a pipe dream. Sienna Khan, the councilwoman." Sienna paused, and she was surprised to feel a sting in her eyes. "I should have known better. It was never gonna happen."

"But it was going to. It still can," Pearl implored. "You really believed before, that you could pull through and do everything you said you would. Are you really going to let Cobalt take that away from you?" She leaned forward and squeezed Sienna's arm, making her jolt in her seat. "This is just a bump on the road, Sienna. You have to keep going."

Sienna shuffled away from Pearl's reach, feeling so desperately small, like she was just a lost kid again. She caught Corsac throwing a look at her, but she couldn't decipher what he was feeling before he looked away.

"That's in the past, Pearl. All of it," Sienna whispered. "I can't force the world to change. Nobody can. All I can do is keep safe the people I care about, and if that means getting my hands dirty again, then that's what I'll have to do."

"But you don't _have to_ ," Pearl said. "You told me before about your life with the White Fang. It was horrible. You don't wanna go back to that. So _don't_."

"It's not that simple," Sienna said, her mouth dry.

"It is. You don't have to do the councilwoman thing either," Pearl said. "Just walk away. Nobody has to get hurt."

A well of emotion rose inside Sienna, and she found herself digging her fingers into her thighs, anything to keep that storm from coming loose. The moment she let go, she knew there was no coming back.

No coming back.

Suddenly, the car stopped.

Sienna looked at Corsac, and the look on his face floored her. She'd never seen him wear such raw emotion before, such sorrow and fear and fury – most of all, fury. She opened her mouth to call his name, and that was when he looked at her, and once again, he was cold, distant.

"You." He unlocked the car, then turned to look at Pearl. "Get out of the car."

Pearl stared back at him, for a moment frozen in terror, before she sat straight, defiance in her eyes.

"Corsac," Sienna said cautiously, suddenly aware of the empty and silent stretch of road they were stopped at. "Pearl is just speaking her mind. There's no need to get hostile."

She looked at Pearl significantly, and the girl shrunk and nodded pliantly.

"See. We're all fine," Sienna said. "Let's take a moment to breathe, then we can get on our way."

Corsac was silent for a moment, then he shot her a glare and reached underneath the driver's seat. Sienna's blood ran cold as he took out a pistol and pointed it at Pearl's face.

"Out." He nudged the gun towards Sienna. "From her side. Then help her to her feet."

"Corsac, what the hell are you doing?" Sienna hissed. "You need to put the gun down-"

" _Out_."

He pressed his finger on the trigger, and Pearl hurried out of the car. The cool night air filled the vehicle as she opened Sienna's door, causing the hairs on her arms to stand on end. Sienna kept her eyes on Corsac, a glare that conveyed every bit of the ire and confusion that were coursing through her, even as Pearl helped her get out, even as the meeting of her feet and the rough ground sent excruciating shockwaves up her legs and torso.

Corsac exited the car to join them, and with his gun pressed against the back of Pearl's neck, led them to the side of the road, where the grass tickled at their ankles and the trees blocked the stars and moon above.

"Corsac," Sienna said, trying to sound calm, but her quivering voice betrayed her. "Why are you doing this? What – what did I do? Why are you turning on me like this?"

Corsac took the gun off Pearl and gestured for them to turn around. Forced to look him in the eyes, Sienna found her anger quickly morphing into despair.

"I thought you were weak, but I was hoping to be wrong. I believed you'd returned to your former self for a while there," Corsac said, his monotone voice cutting at her like a knife. "But I'm convinced now that you've become soft. Irreversibly soft. A plea from an emotional child was all it took to sway you from the path."

"You… you can't be serious. You were testing me?" Sienna said, and she couldn't stop her eyes from burning, and him from seeing it in full. "I trusted you, and you stabbed me in the back, you piece of shit."

She pulled back and winced as Pearl squeezed her arm to keep her from moving too much. But Sienna didn't care. She wasn't afraid. The gun on her face was nothing compared to the horrors that were dawning on her.

"Your own brother, Corsac," she said, choking on her words. "Please, please tell me you didn't-"

"He wasn't supposed to be there! He knew the plan!" Corsac spat, waving his gun erratically. "But he couldn't just leave things be. He couldn't live with letting you die. Like you, he was a fool. It's your fault he's dead. _You_ killed him, Sienna!"

She opened her mouth, but he stepped forward and pressed the gun to her forehead, his face twisted by a mad rage.

"You're going to die now, like you were supposed to, and your death is going to pave the way to the true Vacuo. A Vacuo that belongs to the faunus, to the White Fang!" His shoulders rose and fell, and sorrow flashed on his face. "Don't despair. You were a good High Leader. You will always be remembered for that. And for your last sacrifice."

 _No_. Sienna bowed her head. She'd always thought that, should she die a death like this, she would face the end with dignity. But her confidence had crumbled, and all she could think about was that her stint as High Leader and what she'd done then were the _last_ things she wanted to be remembered for.

"Hey. Point the gun at me, asshole."

Sienna looked at Pearl, horrified. Pearl raised her chin, unphased by the deadly look Corsac threw her.

"Point. It. At. Me!" Pearl insisted, almost shouting. "Are you deaf, or are you dumb?"

Furious, Corsac turned the gun on Pearl.

"No!" Sienna screamed. "Corsac, don't you-"

"Shut up, Sienna," Pearl said, her eyes locked on Corsac's. "You wanna know why your brother really died? He died to protect her." She nodded towards Sienna. "And me. So if you _really_ wanna disappoint him, you're gonna have to kill us both."

"Pearl, for the love of God, please stop," Sienna pleaded, but it fell on deaf ears as Pearl stepped forward, doing Corsac's job and centering the barrel of the gun on her forehead.

"You aren't half the man Fennec was," Pearl whispered. "He was good, deep inside. He cared about Sienna and me. And you, you don't even care about your own brother. You couldn't wait a day before pulling this crap and making his death mean nothing. You`re just a sad little man, and I pity you."

With every word that left Pearl's mouth, Corsac became more and more pale, until she was finished and he was rendered into a ghostly picture of himself. His aim was unsure now, his grip on the pistol going slack as his hand trembled visibly. Sienna waited breathlessly for him to pull the trigger, or drop the gun, or whatever he was about to do…

She never got to find out. The silence was broken suddenly by the noise of a car screeching to a halt, and then there was a bright light shining down on them. As Corsac raised his arm to shield his eyes, Sienna saw a figure walking towards them from the road, a gun of his own in his hands.

"Suntide Police!" the man shouted, stopping a few meters from them. Sienna could now see a tail waving tensely behind him. "Drop the gun! Hands on your head!"

For a moment, Corsac stood frozen, before his eyes returned to Sienna and Pearl and he started to turn…

And the next thing Sienna knew, she was on the ground, Pearl's steadying hold gone without warning. She fought through the pain to sit up and screamed as she saw Pearl slamming against Corsac's side, reaching for the pistol, and they went tumbling down-

A gunshot rang through the night air.

A second later, the policeman got to the two struggling faunus and pulled Corsac away, slamming him down and locking a pair of handcuffs around his wrists.

"Pearl!" he shouted, looking back. "Are you okay?!"

Pearl got on her knees, then slowly stood up, her legs wobbling dangerously. "I'm okay. I think I'm okay." She patted her chest and belly, as if she weren't sure herself, then nodded. "I'm okay. Oh my God, Sun, that was so scary. I wasn't sure you were coming, I had to buy time and I thought he was going to-"

"Everything's okay now. I'm here," the policeman said, pulling her close and embracing her. He looked over her shoulder at Sienna and raised an eyebrow. "No one's hurt…?"

Sienna looked down at herself, then nodded at him. "Who the hell are you?"

"Sun. Sun Wukong," he said. "Police Detective."

"He's a friend of Blake's," Pearl said, and took a phone out of her pocket – Blake's Scroll. "She told me to call him if anything happened. And, uh, Corsac happened." She looked at the downed Corsac and shivered. "I knew something was off when he showed up in your room."

Sun leaned over Corsac to check on his handcuffs, then looked at Sienna. "Should I be arresting you too?" He blinked and turned to Pearl. " _Should_ I be arresting her too?"

"N-no?" Pearl answered hesitantly, her gaze wavering between Sienna and Corsac. "M-maybe you should make your own judgement once you know everything."

Sun looked around them, running a hand back through his hair.

"You know what, I think you've got a point," he said. "There's a lot of explaining to be done here."


	9. Smile

"The whole thing is a sham."

In the front yard of his house, Councilman Cobalt scowled at the cameras. There was anger in his eyes, in his face, but it was just a drop compared to the boiling river of hate inside of him. As always, it was imperative to keep up appearances, even when it drove him mad to restrain himself.

"I've served this country well for years. Decades. Never have I done a single thing to harm Vacuo, much less her people. And now they come at me with claims that I am some… some villain?"

He reigned in his tone.

"All unsubstantiated claims. No one seems to know from whom and where this supposed 'evidence' came from! As if photos and conversations cannot be doctored. And my supposed accomplice, who didn't once utter my name, has now conveniently vanished from under police custody! Anyone with a sound mind can clearly see this situation for what it truly is."

He raised a finger and nodded patiently.

"I am innocent, and justice will prove me right soon enough. So I'll let it run its due course, and cooperate when asked to. But I will say this: this attack on my person is an attack on the people of Vacuo. It is an act of shamelessness and cowardice. And whoever is orchestrating it, when they come out of the shadows…"

He linked his hands behind his back and gave the littlest of smiles to the cameras.

"Well, we shall see how the good people of Vacuo will judge them. I, for one, am confident that everything will be put right… for everyone."

* * *

Ilia stopped the car beside the sidewalk. She kept the motor running, and its low rumbling was all that kept them from a dead silence. Even so, the sound, or lack thereof, coupled with the darkness of approaching midnight, was almost paralyzing.

Blake thought she might stay that way forever, sitting at the passenger seat, looking into the nothing that stretched beyond the windshield. Yet somehow, she found the will to turn around, to look at Ilia, and the look on her friend's face broke her heart. Ilia was still shell-shocked, even more than Blake herself was, and when she would recover from it was unclear.

Maybe she never would.

"It's here?" Ilia mumbled, looking straight ahead, her hands still on the steering wheel.

Blake looked down at the phone she'd borrowed from Ilia, then gave a glance to the Cleanser who was not a Cleanser behind them. His eyes were still glazed-over, and he still refused to speak anything more than a few words at a time, but at least he'd stopped shaking a while ago.

Viktor, he said he was called. Blake had a feeling that wasn't his real name.

"Should be," she said quietly, and quickly dialed a number before raising the phone to her ear. "Sun? I think we're here. Can you come down?"

A couple minutes later, a door opened on the house they were parked next to, and Sun stepped out, bouncing a little on his feet. Someone followed behind him, and after some squinting, Blake realized it was Pearl. She had a frazzled look on her face, but otherwise appeared fine.

Blake breathed a sigh of relief and got out of the car. "My God, am I glad to see you."

Sun stopped before her and grinned, his tail swishing behind him. "I never thought I'd hear that from you," he said. "Not directed at me, at least."

"Me neither, trust me," Blake said. "But I also never thought I'd get mixed up with fighting fake racist extremists and everything that comes with that… so."

"Yeah, because that's pretty comparable." Sun pursed his lips. "Anything to cut my celebration short, eh, Blake?"

Blake gave him a little smile, then looked at Pearl. The girl crossed her arms, then rolled her eyes when she saw Blake open her mouth.

"If you start apologizing, I am gonna barf," Pearl said. " _On you_."

"Oh. Uh…" Blake bit her lip. "You're okay, then? I know I said I wouldn't leave you again, but, well, things got crazy, but I shouldn't have-"

"Uh-oh, my stomach's rumbling!" Pearl waved her fingers over her belly, and Blake shut her mouth immediately. Pearl stared at her for a moment before uncrossing her arms, and her eyes feel to her feet. "I'm fine. Just tired of… you know, all of this."

"Yeah…" Blake said. "That makes two of us."

"Three of us," Sun said. "You should have seen Pearl before, Blake. She stalled Corsac like a badass, saved herself and Sienna!"

Blake looked at Pearl curiously, and she puffed up her chest with pride.

"That's right," Pearl said. "I was a total badass. Everybody better watch out, the new Pearl is in town, taking names and kicking ass!"

"Really, though, it was awesome," Sun said. "She was all like, _shoot me, I dare you_! _Put that gun on my head and pull the trigger_!"

Blake's eyes widened. Pearl turned and punched Sun in the arm. "Don't tell her that part, you idiot!"

"R-right." Sun rubbed his arm. "She was just, uh, very persuasive. And sensible. All very standard hostage situation procedure. I was really impressed, especially 'cause she doesn't have any training."

Blake stared at the two of them for a moment, then shook her head and looked at the house behind them.

"Where are Sienna and Corsac?" she asked.

"They're inside," Sun said. "I handcuffed Corsac to a table and left Sienna watching him. Which might not have been the smartest thing to do, now that I think about it." He shrugged and gestured at the car. "That's the guy?"

Blake opened the backdoor, and Viktor got out. Sullen and twitchy as he was, he still towered over Sun, and Pearl even more. He made no eye contact, as if he was ashamed to even look at any of them.

Pearl started stepping back, suddenly shivering, and Sun stepped between her and Viktor. "Should I handcuff him?" he asked seriously, glancing at Blake.

Blake looked at the silent giant and shook her head. "I don't know. It's your call," she said. "I don't think he's any danger to us anymore, but…"

Sun looked back at Pearl, and she gave him the tiniest of shrugs. "I'll just watch him for now, then," he said, then pointed a finger at Viktor's chest. "But if you even look at any of us wrong…"

Viktor looked down at him, and his eyes followed the swishing of Sun's tail. "I understand," he said, his voice a low rumble.

"Good," Sun said. "We can go inside now, then, and figure out this whole mess. Yeah?"

"Yeah." Blake looked back at the car and nodded. "You two go ahead and take him inside. I'll be with you in a minute."

Sun gave her a curious look, then shrugged and walked back towards the house, leading Viktor in front of him with a few harsh pokes to the back. Pearl followed a moment later, eyes fixed uneasily on the giant.

Blake turned back to the car and leaned on the open window on her side to look at Ilia. She looked in about the same mental state as before, but seemed like she had listened to the whole conversation.

"Ilia? We're going inside now," Blake said cautiously. "You're coming with me?"

Ilia tapped her fingers against the steering wheel, and a frown appeared on her forehead. "I think I should be going now, Blake."

"Don't." Blake opened the door and got in beside Ilia. "Why do you say that?"

"Because _clearly_ , I've done more than enough already." Ilia tore her eyes away from the road to finally looked at Blake. "What use am I to you – to any of you here? I don't wanna screw things up even more than I already have."

"You haven't screwed anything up," Blake said.

"Now you're just lying," Ilia muttered. "Or being deliberately stupid. You know we'd all be in a much better place if I had just stayed put and… done whatever it is non-crazy people do."

"I _don't_ know that," Blake said. "Yeah, we've both done some stuff that we probably shouldn't have, but everything that's happened was so beyond our control… We were just trying to do our best. I'm _still_ trying. You should too."

Ilia leaned forward and pressed her forehead to the steering wheel, and a faint gasp escaped her lips. "I don't know what I'm doing, Blake."

Not knowing what else to do, Blake reached over and patted Ilia on the back, as gently as she could. "Welcome to the club."

Ilia looked up at her, and Blake reeled at the intensity of her eyes. There was so much there, so many conflicting emotions, Blake doubted even Ilia herself understood it. Blake had no hope to, certainly, especially when her own heart and mind were making spins and jumps and the heat was creeping up on her cheeks-

"I hate you so, so much," Ilia whispered. She took a deep breath, then stepped out of the car and walked around it to open Blake's door. "Okay. Let's go, then - back into the fire. Because what else are we gonna freaking do, right?"

Blake got out and, somehow, managed to give her a wry smile. "That's the spirit."

If looks could kill, Ilia would have slain Blake that very instant.

" _So much_ …"

* * *

The inside of the house was much nicer than Blake had expected. Sun had told her on the phone that it was a police safehouse, so she'd imagined it would have been a place bereft of much more than the bare necessities someone needed to survive in it for a prolonged stay. But if Blake hadn't know better, she would have mistaken it for just a normal house. It even had a nice little garden at the back. All in the name of keeping up a façade of normalcy, she supposed.

Everyone was already gathered in the living room when Blake and Ilia arrived there. Sun was pacing around, his eyes constantly scanning everyone else in the room, while Pearl was sitting restlessly on a sofa. Viktor the not-Cleanser had been sat on a wooden chair at a corner, and was silent was ever.

Sienna was sitting at the extreme other end of Pearl's sofa, and though Blake briefly froze when she saw her there, Sienna didn't seem to notice her appearance. No, her attention was inexorably fixed on the table in the middle of the room, and the man handcuffed to it – Corsac Albain.

Blake felt her blood run cold when she looked at him, and she realized she didn't blame Sienna one bit for being so fixated by his presence. She would want to do horrible things to him too if she were in Sienna's shoes. If anything, Blake was surprised Sienna hadn't taken the opportunity to do something when Sun had left her alone with Corsac.

"Alright, we're all here," Sun said. He clapped his hands and looked around one last time, his eyes temporarily stopping on Ilia. "Hi, there. Don't know if you remember me from the police station, but… Well, it's nice to meet you again."

"Yeah, I… I remember," Ilia said, giving him an awkward wave. "Sorry about… you know."

"Water under the bridge," Sun said. "If Blake trusts you, I trust you. No need to get complicated."

Blake looked from him to Ilia. "Are you sure about that, Sun? I appreciate what you're doing here, but…"

"Blake, I'm in a world of trouble already. This here, it's just one more thing to add to the pile." Sun shrugged. "Don't worry about me. We're all in this together, right?"

Blake gave a hesitant nod. Far be it for her to tell him what to do, especially at this point. Besides, she already knew he ignored half of everything she told him.

Pearl looked up from the sofa, studying Ilia with interest. "You're Ilia, right?"

Ilia looked at Blake for help, and at her encouraging nod, offered her hand to Ilia. "I am. And you are…?"

"Pearl. Nice to meet you." Pearl shook Ilia's hand and smiled. "Blake talks a lot about you."

"S-she does?" Ilia blushed and looked at Blake.

"She's exaggerating," Blake said hastily. "I might have mentioned you once or twice, nothing more."

"True, true," Pearl said. "I guess I just got a big impression from just those few times. You know how it is."

Ilia's skin colored with a little yellow as she gazed confusedly at the girl. Pearl looked at Blake and smiled slyly, then turned away, the innocent angel that she was. Blake wrung her hands at her waist – it was all she could do not to pull Pearl by the ear for messing with her like that.

Blake gave Ilia a look and nodded at the sofa, but the chameleon girl shook her head and went to lean against a wall, her hands balled under her armpits. She looked ready to bolt in a second's notice, and Blake didn't blame her for that. She could scarcely bear the tension in the room herself.

She sat between Pearl and Sienna, and winced a bit at the sight of the cane that rested against the sofa. She couldn't exactly bring herself to look at its owner, and the reason it was there, but she couldn't ignore Sienna entirely either.

"Blake," Sienna said quietly, her eyes breaking away from Corsac to gaze at her for a brief moment before they returned to him. But they weren't so intense anymore, as if now Corsac were now more of a distraction than anything else, or an excuse.

 _You are?_ , Blake stopped herself from asking. "How's your leg?"

Sienna was silent for a moment, and Blake wondered if she hadn't said the wrong thing regardless.

"I don't know. It still hurts like a son of a bitch," Sienna said finally. "I probably ruined any chance of a good recovery with that disappearing stunt. I suppose it's only what I deserve."

Blake nudged the cane. It looked nice enough, she supposed, but she couldn't bring herself to like it. "I'm sure it will heal well, if you just give it time."

"Your optimism is ever so appreciated, Blake." Sienna's lips parted in a smile, and though it was bereft of any joy, Blake could tell it was an honest one, at least. "I'm glad you're here."

Her smile slowly faded, and her eyes became cold, as Sun stepped over to Corsac and unlocked his handcuffs. Corsac swung his wrist for a moment, then started to get up, only to be pushed back down.

"No," Sun said. "You're not going anywhere."

Corsac's face twisted with a bitter rage as he looked up at Sun. He looked away then, and his eyes went to each other person in the room before they finally stopped at Blake.

"He's right," Blake said. "Now, you talk."

* * *

"You are delusional if you think I would talk to you. To any of you," Corsac said. "You can't force me to speak."

Sienna edged forward on the sofa, gripping her knees with trembling fingers. "You held a gun to my head, you all but admitted your part in all of this, and you think you're gonna get away with it with a little silent protest? You think _I'm_ gonna let it go that easy?"

"Again." Corsac turned away from her, chin raised. "You can't force me."

"You're right. I can't force you to speak." Sienna reached for her cane beside her. "But I can make it a very attractive prospect. You know I'm good at that."

"As if," Corsac sneered. "When have you ever done your dirty work yourself, oh High Leader?"

Sienna gave him no reply as she started to rise from the sofa, and despite his defiance, Corsac backed away slightly in his chair. But before Sienna could truly get on her feet, Blake grabbed her by the wrist and gently pulled her back down to the sofa, then took her cane from her and handed it over to Pearl.

"You're going to talk," Sun said, stepping close to Corsac with his arms crossed. "Because it's in your best interest to."

"Is that so?" Corsac grunted. "Please, do enlighten me as to how."

"You see, you might not want to talk… But he does." Sun gestured at Viktor. "He's ready to spill the beans. Anything we wanna know. So you can let him do that on his own, and risk him saying some stuff that might reflect badly on yourself… Or you can chime in a little, and who knows, maybe you'll gain something from that."

Corsac looked up at Sun, and his face became blank of all emotion. "As if I'd ever negotiate with a backstabbing pig like you."

"Oh, that's precious coming from _you_."

In the blink of an eye, Ilia crossed the room and grabbed Corsac by the shoulder. She pressed him against the chair roughly, and Blake started to get up, but stopped when she saw Sun was closer and already prepared to intervene.

" _He_ works for _you_ , doesn't he?" Ilia said, nodding at Viktor. "You stripped him of everything that made him a faunus. Everything you could take away, you did. And then you sent him to kill his own. And you want to talk about backstabbing? There's no word to describe how _repugnant_ you are."

A drop of sweat rolled down Corsac's forehead. He pressed his lips, not a sound escaping them. Ilia gave him a shove, then stepped back, a disgusted grimace on her face.

"I'm right about that, aren't I?" she asked, looking at Viktor. She let her arms fall limp as a hopeful expression flashed on her face.

Viktor shifted in his chair, and looking supremely vulnerable despite his size – as if he could break were he to be touched by a single finger. "You are," he rumbled. "He did all those things." He paused. "I did all those things."

Ilia raised her eyes to the ceiling and breathed in sharply, then walked away briskly, her back turned to the rest of the room. Blake followed her with her eyes sadly, before looking at Viktor again.

"What happened, exactly?" she asked.

Viktor's face lit up with alarm, and he retreated into his corner.

"Hey, man. Take your time," Pearl said softly. "Nobody's rushing you."

Blake looked at Pearl in surprise. She was still shivering slightly as she looked at the man who had come so close to killing her, yet at the same time, Blake could see compassion in her eyes. That seemed to come so naturally to Pearl, Blake almost envied her.

"I… joined the White Fang. Years ago. When I was just a boy," Viktor said brokenly. "I had lost a lot. And it was a good place. But, but not good enough, I found, after a while." He bowed his head in grief. "I was too angry to appreciate the good I'd found."

Sienna scowled. She pressed a hand down on the sofa beside her, and her nails ripped open a tear in the fabric.

"Corsac and Fennec, they took notice of my anger, and they offered a means for me to use it for the good of the faunus," Viktor said. "So I left the White Fang, and I became… someone… something else. My mission was to infiltrate the Cleansers, wherever they are, to learn everything about them… And in time, to destroy them, from the inside."

Silence fell as everyone in the room took in his words. From his chair, Corsac glared at Viktor, his lips twitching with barely restrained rage.

"So it wasn't a lie, after all," Pearl said, her small voice breaking the silence. "Cobalt really is evil."

"Whether he's evil was never in question," Sienna said harshly. "Cleanser or not, he's a plague on Vacuo and her faunus. But now we know with certainty what he is." She looked at Viktor and frowned. "So the bastard really sent you to kill me?"

Viktor nodded. "I'm sorry." He glanced at Corsac. "Such was the plan."

"The plan. To do as he wished, to have me _killed_ , and then expose him afterward," Sienna said. "Why, Corsac? You got your brother killed, and for _what_?!"

"It doesn't matter why!" Corsac shouted, looking at Viktor. "None of this would be happening, if only you had done what you were told! If you had talked to the police, the bastard would be dead by now!"

Viktor stared at him in shock for a moment, his arms trembling, before a change came upon his face and he stood up, towering over Corsac. Blake edged closer to Pearl and held an arm over her protectively. She shivered – she wasn't looking at the traumatized man Ilia had interrogated in the tunnels, but rather at the stone-cold killer who had taken Fennec's life, and hers almost.

"You sent me to kill faunus. Our kin. And in that, I almost killed an innocent little girl. That, and I killed your brother." Viktor poked Corsac's chest with a finger. "That was hard. You… You won't be so."

Corsac wilted. Holding up his hands, Sun got between him and Viktor and gently pushed the giant back to his chair, where he sat with a cold expression on his face.

"I still don't understand," Sienna said despondently, before her eyes narrowed. "No. I _wish_ I didn't understand. You wanted to make me a martyr. To murder me in my own home so the whole country would know. All so you could take the reins yourself."

"I did it for the good of the faunus," Corsac said. "Something you lost track of a long time ago."

"Everything I do is for the good of the faunus! I've sacrificed everything for our people, you blind idiot!" Sienna shouted. "I was going to make things better for all of us, and _you_ threw it all away!"

"You were going to lead the faunus into subservience. That was what you were going to do, Sienna," Corsac growled. "You thought you could lead us to salvation, but you were just a weak and delusional _fool_. You had to be stopped."

"And you were going to do better?" Sun jumped in, his tail coiled tensely around his waist. "Killing everyone that's a threat to the faunus, that's even a little problematic - that's the way to make things better?"

"Yes. Anyone that doesn't recognize the superiority of the faunus," Corsac said, and spat between Sun's feet. "No matter what race they are. The true order must be established."

Sun gaped at him, horrified. "You're just as bad as any of the humans you hate. As bad as Cobalt."

"I might be willing to use the same methods as him, but I am better." Corsac grinned. "That's why I, and the faunus, belong at the top."

Sun turned away, one hand covering his mouth while the other opened and closed near his waist. His tail had uncurled, but Blake had never seen it be so still before. He was fighting the whole of his body to keep himself from doing something drastic.

Sienna was similarly still beside Blake, and yet their spirits couldn't be more at odds. She was quieter than when Blake had first seen her at the hospital, quieter even than when she'd told Blake the story of her parents' murder. Even then, Blake hadn't seen tears in her eyes. And she knew they didn't come from the sadness and anger she felt at Corsac's betrayal.

No. The tears were there because of the guilt.

"So. We've established Corsac is a trash bag of a person," Ilia said, stepping close to the group again. "That doesn't change the fact that Cobalt is one too." She looked at Viktor. "He's the leader, isn't he?"

"The Cleansers don't have a clear leader, but… He's pretty much it, yes," Viktor said unsurely.

Ilia was silent for a moment. "Well, I guess it's only right that he's being exposed now. No need for us to do anything about that," she said.

"It's not that easy," Sun said, running a hand through his hair. "The truth about the Cleansers will be coming out any day now."

"How can you be sure of that? They've stayed in the dark for years. I don't see why that would change now," Ilia said.

"Well." Sun thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I kinda had a meeting with a certain reporter, and I told her all about the Cleansers. Gave her proof of their existence and everything."

Blake blinked. "Excuse me, you did _what_?"

"You heard me," Sun said. " _The right thing_."

"If the right thing is causing a goddamn chaos, sure," Sienna muttered.

"People deserve to know the truth," Sun said, unflinching. "Look, the point is, time's ticking. The truth will come out sooner or later, and I suggest we get ahead of it, figure out what to do about Corsac and Cobalt before-"

"Uhm, Blake?" Pearl spoke up, and Sun quieted down immediately. "I think someone's calling you?" She held up Blake's scroll. "Sorry, I kinda forgot to return it, what with… everything that's happening right now…"

Blake took the buzzing Scroll wordlessly and looked at the screen, then shook her head in confusion. It was the number from before – the stranger that had clued her in to Ilia's hotel room. The person who had lured her away from Sienna's house right before-

She looked at Corsac and turned the Scroll around to show him the number. "You know who this is, don't you? You're working with them. They take orders from you-" She stopped when she noticed Corsac's ears shift with astonishment. "Corsac. Who is this?"

Corsac hung back, a faint smile coming to his lips. "Answer and find out."

Blake looked around, first at Sun, who shrugged hopelessly, then at Ilia - and at her nod, Blake put the Scroll on speaker and accepted the call.

" _Finally. Hello, Blake._ "

Blake dropped the Scroll on the sofa and jumped off it. Her breathing came in heaves as she stumbled away, her legs suddenly turning to jelly. She reached for anything to hold on to, but found nothing but air – until an arm wrapped around her waist, and a bright-pink hand settled between her shoulder and her neck, steady and calm.

" _You are there, aren't you? I know you are. No need to be shy._ "

Sun walked over to the sofa and gestured at the Scroll, then looked towards Blake, asking a silent question. Blake shook her head violently, and vaguely registered Ilia beside her, mouthing something to Sun. He threw up his arms and backed away.

Blake sighed in relief – then covered her mouth in horror as she saw Sienna pick up the Scroll. The lioness gave her a lasting look, reluctance flashing in her eyes, and then brought the phone close to her mouth.

"Adam," she said, so worn-out she could have passed for someone thrice her age.

" _Sienna. Now that's a surprise,_ " Adam said, and Blake could picture the smile on his lips, the dancing eyes hidden behind the mask. " _I'm guessing Corsac must be with you, too, if you're speaking to me. Who else is there?_ "

Sienna's expression hardened. "What do you want, Adam? Why are you calling?"

" _Well, you see… I sent Corsac your way a few hours ago. We were going to see where you stood after everything_ ," Adam said. " _Either you went along with the revised plan to kill Cobalt, or you didn't, and Corsac got rid of you. It's been a while, I've heard nothing from him, and Cobalt is still alive and breathing, so obviously something happened._ " He chuckled. " _I'm guessing Blake happened. Maybe Ilia. Or both._ "

"You're right. Your plan didn't work," Sienna said, and shook her head at Blake. "And neither of them had anything to do with it."

" _Really? And I went through all that trouble to try and get them out of the picture before your planned demise_ ," Adam said. " _You're a resilient one, aren't you, Sienna? If only you had kept your backbone._ "

"You were behind everything from the start. Of course you were. Everything was to set up for _your_ takeover, wasn't it?" Sienna's fingers turned white around the Scroll. If it were any other phone, her strength might have just broken it. "And you couldn't even do it yourself, you coward."

" _Oh, I'm not afraid of you or anyone, Sienna. The thing is, I've learned during my time away. Sometimes a hands-off approach is the best_ ," Adam said. " _Not this time, demonstrably. But I couldn't have known how complicated things would get. I guess hardship showed Fennec's true colors. If only he were more like his brother…_ "

"Fuck you. You're a lunatic, Adam. I'm ashamed I ever _pitied_ you," Sienna hissed. "How many times will you have to fail before you learn to _stop_? You're not going to get your bloody dream world to become a reality, no matter what you do. You're a failure, Adam. Nothing more."

Sienna lowered the phone to her knee. Nobody in the room spoke a word, and the longer it went on without Adam responding, the less sure her expression became.

" _My plan didn't work out the way I intended, that I acknowledge. But I'd hardly consider the whole thing a failure,_ " Adam said finally. " _The stage is still set for my revolution. It wouldn't be perfect, yes, but I'd only need to step out of the shadows at last and lead the charge. Cobalt would go down easily, and all his puppets along with him. From there, it would only be a matter of seizing control._ "

"…But you won't do that?" Sienna asked, frowning.

" _That's to be decided. There's still so much that could happen. But let's talk about what_ you're _going to do,_ " Adam said. " _Are you going to fight with me, or against me? Or are you going to take hold of the situation yourself?_ "

Sienna shook her head. "What the hell does that mean?"

" _Your little election thing. I've practically handed the victory to you, haven't I?_ _I didn't make you a martyr for my cause, but I made you the perfect victim, and Cobalt the perfect villain,_ " Adam said. " _You only have to step up, Sienna. I'll even let you have your victory for a little while. Just until it's proven that_ your _way is the absolutely_ wrong _way. Then, and only then, I'll make my grand return._ "

Sienna looked at the Scroll in dismay and promptly ended the call. She dropped the phone on the sofa, and silence settled in the room like a heavy fog.

* * *

"Well," Sun said. "Where the hell do we go from here?"

Pearl leaned forward on the sofa and looked nervously at Sienna. "You have to get back on the campaign. That's the only way to make everything alright again." She swallowed dry. "Right?"

Slowly, Sienna shook her head. "Not after this. Not when Adam has a hand in it."

"But you were going to win even before he did anything!" Pearl exclaimed desperately. "You didn't ask him to do what he did. A-and, if you just give up, he wins, and Fennec… Fennec died for nothing."

Sienna sunk on the sofa, a haunted look on her face.

"Look, it's like Ilia said," Sun said. "Whatever Sienna decides to do, it doesn't change what happened with Corsac and Cobalt and everything. They still need to answer for what they did." He gestured at the room around them. "We can't sweep all of this under the rug. We _can't_."

"But that's not fair," Pearl said. "If people find out what really happened, Sienna will get blamed, and Cobalt or some other evil person will win the election, and nothing will change and more people will get hurt and-"

"I get it," Sun said, frustrated. "But it's the right thing to do. We can't stoop to their level."

"Their level is kinda a _lot_ lower than that," Pearl muttered. "There has to be a way to do the right thing and still have Sienna win. There has to be."

Sun put his hands on his hips and faced her. "Yeah, it's called sweeping things under the rug, which is not what we are going to do."

"We don't have to hide what happened… But maybe there's a way to tell the story which doesn't end up with everyone hating Sienna," Pearl said, tapping her fingers together.

"That's not much better at all." Sun frowned. "Blake. What do you think?"

Blake jumped, startled. She looked at Ilia for support, but she seemed too preoccupied with her own thoughts to be of any help. With legs that felt made of lead, Blake walked to the sofa and sat on its arm beside Pearl, and tried to ignore how raw her throat felt as she formulated an answer.

"I don't know what to do," she said slowly. "We can't let Adam get away with what he did. But something needs to change. A-and if the only way to make something good out of this is to…" She stopped. "I don't know."

Sun opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Sienna got up with a wince and grabbed her cane, then shuffled away towards the back of the house. Blake heard a door open and close, and then she saw Sienna's silhouette on the garden outside, stood like a statue in the middle of it.

"I think we all need a little time to think," Sun said. "I'll… I'll take Corsac to another room in the meanwhile. I'm not letting him out of my sight."

"What about him?" Ilia asked, nodding towards Viktor in the corner.

"Right. We gotta figure out what to do about him too," Sun muttered. "Can you take him somewhere and watch him for me?"

Ilia shrugged and walked over to Viktor, then grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him away to another room. Sun did the same to Corsac, and after a couple minutes, Blake found herself alone in the room with Pearl.

"Well, that sucked," Pearl said. "All of it, in general."

Blake nodded. Adam's voice still echoed in her head.

"Blake," Pearl whispered. "Is everything going to be okay?"

Blake slid down to the sofa to sit beside her, and Pearl lied down, her head resting on Blake's lap.

"Yeah," Blake lied. "It's going to be okay."

* * *

Pearl drifted into sleep shortly after, and Blake stayed with her for a good while more, just listening to the girl's soft breathing while consumed by her own thoughts.

She supposed she should be confused beyond hope, withdrawn so deep inside her mind that she might as well be comatose. It would only be appropriate, after everything she'd gone through, and now _this_. And yet things were… clear. Scarily clear.

With a sigh, Blake realized she was tired. So tired, in fact, she might not care anymore. It was an unsettling realization. The White Fang, the Cleansers, Sienna, everything had seemed so big and important before – and of course, she had been in the middle of it all, because she must always be.

When had that changed? The prospect of getting up and simply walking out the door, to never be seen again by these people – when had it become so tempting?

Except she couldn't do that, for whatever reason.

Growing weary of the idleness, Blake carefully lifted Pearl's head from her lap and stood up. She adjusted the girl on the sofa, then headed out the backdoor into the garden.

Sienna was still there, all by her lonesome. She'd taken a seat on the edge of a flowerpot, her injured leg splayed out before her, jumping with occasional shakes. There was little light except for the stars above, leaving her face in the shadows where even Blake had difficulty deciphering it.

"Am I stupid for not having seen this coming?"

Blake came to a stop as she contemplated Sienna's question. There was half a garden of distance between them, but it felt like they were right next to each other.

"I would have seen it coming, in the past," Sienna muttered. "My closest advisors conspiring right under my nose, and I was none the wiser to it. Young me would be ashamed." She pursed her lips. "Not that _old_ me isn't ashamed too, mind you."

"I didn't see it coming either, and not for a lack of looking," Blake said. "Am _I_ stupid?"

"No. You are devilishly clever, and, as already established, hopelessly optimistic," Sienna said. "No wonder you didn't catch on. Now where's my excuse?"

A chill breeze passed through the garden. Blake wrapped her arms around herself for warmth, frowning as she gazed at Sienna.

"You know, Sienna, of all the people who can't accept that you've changed," Blake said. "You must be the most stubborn."

Sienna raised an eyebrow, and Blake met her gaze easily, feeling strangely calm despite herself.

"This might sound absurd, but I think it's a good thing you didn't catch on to Corsac's treachery," Blake said. "Because you _would_ have, before. But you didn't. Because you _have_ changed. You've become kinder, and trusting, and… Well, you haven't blown anyone's brains out in the last twenty-four hours."

"I certainly tried to," Sienna said bitterly. "Don't forget why I was in the car with Corsac. I was going to kill Cobalt."

"Were you? Or did you just _want_ to?" Blake raised a hand to silence Sienna as she started to protest. "You see what I'm talking about? I am _telling_ you you're better than you were, and you keep arguing."

Sienna pressed her lips, a strange mix of irritation and delight crossing her face. "Does that mean you've finally come around to me?"

"I think that happened some time ago, actually." Blake looked away. "Just took a while for it to catch up to me, I guess."

Sienna turned to her thoughts, and what semblance of joy Blake might have given her faded away slowly. She drew back her leg, wincing slightly, and leaned forward as much as she could without causing herself great pain. She grabbed her cane and idly passed it from one hand to the other. The longer her silence went on, the more perturbed she became.

"I suppose I got what I wanted, after all," Sienna murmured. "Your support. Better late than never." She looked up at Blake, frowning. "Or am I getting ahead of myself?"

"I think you can do some good, if given the chance," Blake said, and was surprised by how easily the words came. "Are you still prepared to try?"

"Am I?" Sienna released a long breath. "What I am, is tired. And unsure, now more than ever. We're talking about millions of peoples' lives here." She paused. "To what lengths can one woman be allowed to go to pursue her atonement?"

"You're not planning to hurt anyone," Blake said.

"No, I am not," Sienna said. "But I might, anyway." She shook her head. "And beside all that, we've already got some very pressing matters on our hands. I… I could have won the election before, I know I could have, but when everything about Corsac and Adam comes out… I think that's the end of the line for me, Blake." She rubbed her forehead. "Unless it _doesn't_ come out."

Sienna looked at Blake, begging for an answer to her problem, and Blake wished – she wished she was angry, that she wanted to lash out about everyone looking at her for a solution when she didn't know any better than them – and she wished she was as unsure as Sienna, as Sun, as Pearl, that the answer wasn't so torturingly clear to her, so she could stop pretending-

And when she looked at Sienna, Blake realized Sienna understood. Because she always had. She'd said it loud and clear at the hospital, and neither of them had forgotten.

"You don't have to be afraid, Blake. _I_ am asking _you_ ," Sienna said. "The burden will not be yours to shoulder. It will be mine. So, please, whatever you think I should do… Just tell me. _Please_."

Blake closed her eyes. God, she was really going to do this.

She was going to pull on that thread.

There was no coming back.

She opened her eyes and faced Sienna-

"Blake?"

A door opened her, and Pearl peeked out into the garden, a flustered look on her face.

"Pearl, what's wrong?" Sienna asked, shuffling towards the girl with her cane. "Did something happen?"

"I'm not sure. Uhm, Ilia is missing," Pearl said, and she looked at Blake as if to apologize. "I just woke up and I couldn't find her anywhere."

A coldness seeped through Blake's heart. She stomped past Pearl and entered the house, and saw Sun just as he came in through the front door.

"Her car's gone too," he said. "Blake, she just left. I didn't even notice it."

Quiet as a mouse, Viktor stepped into the living room, and Blake shot him such a fierce look he actually stumbled back a step.

"You left her alone with him," she said, closing her fists.

"I'm sorry. It was dumb," Sun said. "I shouldn't have-"

"It doesn't matter now," Blake interrupted, and pointed at Viktor. "You talked to her about Cobalt?"

He nodded, a look of terrible guilt on his face.

"She's going to kill him," Blake said. "I need to go."

Behind her, Pearl yelled something, but Blake gave her no mind as she stormed out of the house. Sun followed her out and grabbed her arm. With an almost feral hiss, Blake turned and slapped his hand off of her, then shoved him away with a palm to the chest.

"Blake, what are you talking about?" Sun shouted. "Why do you think Ilia-"

"Sun, I _really_ don't have the time to explain it to you," Blake said. "I need to stop her before it's too late."

Sun gaped at her, bewildered, then caught up to her a moment later when she started towards the sidewalk again. "Alright, I believe you – but how are you gonna get to her in time? Do you even know where Cobalt lives?"

Blake stopped, looking at the street uncertainly.

"Never mind. Just get in," Sun said, and ran over to his car, parked just a few meters ahead where Ilia had left her borrowed vehicle before. He jumped in, then looked at her through the passenger's window. "Well? You said there was no time!"

Shedding all doubt, Blake got in after him and put on her seatbelt as Sun turned on the car.

"You're not exaggerating, are you?" he asked. "She's really gonna try and-"

"Yeah," Blake said. "Drive, Sun."

"Don't have to tell me."

Sun stomped on the gas and pulled into the road, and with screeching tires, they sped off into the city.

* * *

"What do you mean you're cutting all ties with- that's outrageous! I demand an explanation!"

Cobalt stomped around his lavish living room, making the glass table in the center of it shake with the fury of his steps. One of the glasses on it came dangerously close to falling off the edge and shattering on the floor, where it would have no doubt sent flying hundreds of miniscule shards. Not that he cared. He was too angry to care about such trivial things.

Too angry to notice her, standing in the shadows just behind him.

"I don't care how our association reflects on your name – I've been a crucial partner of the SDC since you first ventured into Vacuo! You wouldn't have survived a month in this barbaric country without my generous support!" he continued to holler, and no doubt the person on the other end of the line didn't appreciate his volume. "You've never cared about my _reputation_ before. And suddenly, after a string of baseless accusations by a bunch of wild animals, you want to cut all ties?"

She curled her fists, but stopped herself from coming out of the shadows. Not just yet. He needed to understand how truly helpless he was first.

"Oh, you don't appreciate my language? _I_ don't appreciate dealing with a spoiled daddy's brat with an overinflated sense of ego! Take my warning, you put your father on the phone right this moment or I so swear I will destroy your glamorous little life, you-" Cobalt paused briefly, and his face got even redder somehow. "You little harlot, you did not just hang up on me. You are _finished_."

He tossed his phone away, and it broke through a window and plunged into the darkness below. Cursing under his breath, Cobalt walked over to the window and looked down at his front yard – and slowly, the anger on his face faded away, and concern started to creep in.

He was just realizing that none of the armed guard he'd hired to protect him, trained men from only the most respectable agencies in the country, were patrolling the grounds around the house anymore. There was absolutely nobody down there.

If only he had sharper eyes, he'd have instead noticed that his guards were still there – they were just in no state to protect him in any way.

Cobalt backed away from the window and went to a panel on the wall, where a dozen different screens displayed every corner of his property. Only then did he notice the unconscious bodies on the grass.

And the dark shape behind him.

Cobalt turned with a wordless shout, but Ilia had him pressed against the wall in a second, her hand on his mouth.

"Shhh." Ilia brought a finger to her lips. "No screaming. Not yet."

She touched the finger to the middle of his forehead and held it there for a moment, considering jolting him right there. She'd never tested it before, but she was sure the damage her Semblance would inflict on that area would be devastating. Fatal, even.

Which is why she ultimately decided otherwise. She would afford him no such kindness.

Ilia pulled back her hand and made a fist, then suddenly thrust it forward, smashing the panel right beside Cobalt's head. Her palm muffled his shouting, until she finally let him go.

"You – how dare you step into-"

She grabbed him by the collar and spun him around by it. Finding a red armchair, she shoved him onto it, then towered over him with a foot on his knee as he tried to stand back up.

"You know who I am, don't you?" she asked, leaning close to his face.

"You're the psycho from the police station," he sputtered. "Why have you-"

"The police station," Ilia repeated, disappointed. She snapped his head aside with the back of her hand, then leaned back, staring a hole into his skull. "Think again. You know who I am."

He rubbed his cheek and looked up at her, his face turning even paler. Still, he was confused, and Ilia almost shouted in frustration. Her hand met his cheek again, and when she stepped back, her skin was a pulsating red.

Finally, his eyes alighted with revolt. "You're one of _hers_ ," he spat. "Sent to kill me. Savage beast."

"I am _no one's_ ," Ilia said. "I'm my own woman, and I'm here to kill you not because anyone ordered me, but because you deserve it." She let her knuckles buzz with the power of her Semblance and trailed them across the length of his jaw. "I've been looking for you for years – only I didn't know it was you I was looking for. I thought it would take me a lifetime to get to you, that I would have to leave half your lackeys in a coma just to finally hear your name… But I guess I got lucky, after all." She smirked. "Or unlucky."

Cobalt watched her hand graze his jaw, eyes wavering. "You think you scare me? That I am quaking in my boots like I'm being visited by some nightmare?" he sneered. "Whatever you've been up to, I haven't heard a word of it. It seems to me you have deluded yourself into thinking you're something more than a crazed animal."

Ilia almost brought the full force of her fist against him then, but with a sense of restraint she'd never felt before, managed to pull herself away.

"Of course you haven't heard of me," she said. "I imagine you don't even know half the people you've had killed."

Cobalt smiled. "I've had no people killed."

"Only animals," Ilia said. "Well, this animal, you will get to know very well. Unfortunately, we only have this one night. There will be no remembering later. But we'll make it count."

She grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet, then dragged him away from the armchair. A stomp on his ankle, and he feel to his knees, and she glided behind him, twisting his arm at a gruesome angle. A strangled noise escaped his lips, before she struck the back of his neck with the palm of her hand and sent him into a coughing fit.

"I could paralyze you from head to toe. Make you completely helpless. The unspeakable things I could do to you, then…" Ilia said. "But that wouldn't be right. The pain, oh, you'd still feel it… But you wouldn't be able to struggle. You see, helplessness isn't when you can't do anything to help yourself… It's when you can, but it just doesn't matter."

She let go of his arm, and Cobalt fell forward, hitting his head on the floor. He immediately started crawling away, but not five seconds passed before Ilia stepped on his back and pinned him down violently.

"Here's the thing. I don't know if they got to struggle. If they got to fight," she whispered. "I don't know if they stayed hours or days under the rubble, hoping for someone to come and save them, or if they just died instantly without ever realizing…" She stopped, a shudder temporarily stealing the red from her skin. "It doesn't matter. It didn't matter then, and it doesn't matter now. Whatever happened, they were helpless. Their fates were sealed. By _you_."

Cobalt tried to push himself up, but she was too strong, and he was too weak. Too helpless. Yet he didn't seem to accept that, and kept trying to overpower her. "I d-don't know who you're talking-"

"I know you don't know!" Ilia shouted. She stomped on his back, and he yelled out in pain.

"P-please!" he gasped. "Whatever y-you want-"

"I want you to suffer for what you did!" Like thunder, she struck down on the back of his head. "I want you _dead_!"

She grabbed him by the back of his collar and lifted him up, then held him away from herself, her free hand trembling at her side.

"Ilia. You don't really want that."

Ilia looked over her shoulder and saw Blake standing there. She was pale under the artificial light, and her eyes radiated a boundless fear – like she was standing at the edge of the precipice, about to lose everything.

Ilia was too angry to care.

"Here she is again. Blake Belladonna, come to save the day," she spat. "Just in the nick of time."

"Ilia," Blake said, her eyes shifting from her to Cobalt. "Put him down."

"Or what? You're gonna lecture me to death?" Ilia said. "Or you're gonna do it the old-fashioned way?"

"I don't wanna fight you, Ilia," Blake said. "Please, just think about what you're doing. You don't wanna kill Cobalt. There's no coming back from that."

" _There's no coming back from that_. You know what else you don't come back from?" Ilia held her fist next to Cobalt's head. "You're not gonna talk me out of this, Blake. Not this time. The only way you're gonna stop me is if you kill me."

"Killing Cobalt is not going to bring your parents back to life."

Ilia looked at Blake, and her skin swirled in a river of red and blue, until it became a pure, depthless white. "You're right. It's not." She tossed Cobalt aside, and he slammed against a wall before he collapsed. "But I've still gotta do it."

She charged Blake, and the world became an undiscernible blur around Ilia as they crashed to the floor together. She struck out with her elbow, driving it into the flesh of Blake's shoulder, and she pressed on. Her teeth rattled with the strength and ferocity that coursed through her – _became_ her. Blake's lips opened and closed, but Ilia didn't hear a word she said.

A knee dug into her belly, and for a split second, she released the pressure on Blake's shoulder – just enough time for Blake to slip from beneath her, dragging herself backwards with a half-raised head. But Ilia didn't falter or hesitate. In a second, she was back on top, swing a punch at Blake's head.

Her fist passed through shadow and hit the floor, breaking a hole in the wooden surface and sending splinters everywhere. A painful jolt rippled up her arm.

She knew immediately where Blake would reappear, but her insight and instinct were useless as an arm was already around her neck, and she was pulled roughly to her feet. Her wrists were pushed together forcefully, and something started wrapping around them, a familiar fabric – Blake's ribbon.

"Stop fighting," Blake said at her ear. "Ilia, please, I don't wanna-"

Ilia jerked her head back and felt something break behind her. Her wrists came free, and she spun around to find Blake wobbling sickly, blood slipping between her fingers as she held her nose.

"Come on, Blake. Give it your all. You know what you have to do," Ilia said hoarsely. "You've done it before."

Blake lowered her bloodied hand and stared at Ilia, and her eyes went from pleading to resolute.

Ilia raised her arms an instant before Blake collided against her, and still she only barely remained on her feet. She slid a foot back to find a stronger balance, but Blake was relentless, ducking under her guard and landing a blow beneath her breast. Ilia reeled back, holding her arms up again as Blake charged in with another punch.

There was no impact, no fall. For a moment, Ilia's vision was taken by an explosion of smoke-like blackness. And then Blake slid in with a kick behind her, taking Ilia's legs out from under her, and her head hit the floor.

* * *

"Shit!"

Blake dove to her knees beside Ilia. She jostled her by her shoulder, but Ilia lay unresponsive, her mouth halfway open.

"Ilia! I'm so sorry," Blake gasped. "I didn't mean to. Please talk to me. _Please_!"

This shouldn't be happening. It shouldn't be possible. Ilia was stronger, like Blake was. She should have been fine.

She should have been. Blake couldn't have known. But she should have been better. She should have thought. She was supposed to _stop_ Ilia, not-

Ilia's eyes opened, and Blake almost cried in relief – a relief that lasted but seconds, as she noticed the look on Ilia's face, the hurt, the betrayal, the anger.

Ilia got up a second earlier than Blake did, seemingly possessed by some new, raw energy, and her fist struck faster than Blake's eyes could follow. The side of Blake's skull erupted with a dizzying array of sensations, and it quickly spread from there, the heat and cold rippling through her Aura and skin and leaving her numb everywhere.

Blake stumbled back, the living room spinning madly around her. She looked at Ilia, and even through the haze she could see the wrath in her eyes. Blake tried to speak, but if any words were leaving her lips, she herself couldn't tell.

Ilia was in front of her again the next moment, her eyes inches away from Blake's own. Blake reached for her hand in a desperate attempt to calm Ilia down – if she could just touch her for a second, hold her, surely everything would be okay.

Their fingers brushed, and Ilia raised a leg and planted her foot on Blake's stomach, sending her reeling until the back of her knees met with a sharp edge. Blake fell over backwards, breaking something under her before she hit the floor.

Around her were hundreds of glass shards, big and small. Through the numbness, she vaguely registered pain.

Ilia stopped before her, her face going pale. She covered her mouth with her hands, horror and regret dawning on her. "Oh, God… Not again. Not again…"

Blake tried to push herself up, but her arms refused to obey her, and simply dragging them across the floor was a drain on her strength. She forced her lips to move, to tell Ilia she was okay, but her voice was less than a murmur.

The back of her neck startled to tingle.

Ilia took a step towards her, then stopped suddenly, her skin turning orange with alarm, and she spun around suddenly. Blake realized why a moment later as she struggled to raise her head and looked past Ilia, an odd buzzing growing in her ears.

With heavy steps, Cobalt made his appearance, descending into the living room from a set of stairs opposite from them. In his hands was a weapon – a Dust cannon so large it took both his arms to lift it, and even then, it was a tenuous hold. Blake could already see the energy building up inside, its multicolored glow leaking past the barrel, and she realized the buzzing in her ears did not come from her after all.

"Put that thing down, now!" Ilia shouted.

"I don't think so, no," Cobalt said, smiling cruelly at her. "I'll wipe you out myself, vermin."

Ilia stepped towards Cobalt, then stopped, turning her eyes away from the building energy. She could reach Cobalt without a doubt and disarm him, but the cannon would still go off. The energy had to go somewhere.

She looked back at Blake, who still couldn't move and would be in the direct line of fire, and planted her feet on the floor between her and Cobalt.

Blake shook her head. "D-don't!" she gasped. "I-Ilia, g-get away…!"

Ilia stared at her for a moment, then turned to face Cobalt, standing firm.

"That's right. In the end, you know your place – to be put down by your superiors!" Cobalt shouted. "Now die, and die screaming!"

Ilia squared her shoulders… and smiled. "You wish."

Cobalt screamed furiously – and shortly, his scream was overpowered by a louder, bestial, blood-curdling screech from the skies. Suddenly, chunks of the ceiling started to fall as a shadowy talon broke through it, followed by a teethed beak and two blood-red eyes.

Cobalt fired, the Grimm came down, and everything went to hell.


	10. Defeat in Victory

"This can't be good," Pearl said, so quietly Sienna barely heard her.

Sienna looked at Pearl and started to ask what she was talking about, but her voice died in her throat when she saw the red light on the girl's face. It came from the phone she was holding in her hands – Blake's scroll, which she'd forgotten in the safehouse in her hurry to go after Ilia.

She got up from the sofa and shuffled over to Pearl, ignoring the pain that spiked up her leg. Wordlessly, she took the Scroll from Pearl's hand, and a hole seemed to open at the bottom of her stomach as she gazed at the flashing red screen. She knew what it meant even before she tapped it and the light was substituted by a map of the city – with several blinking red spots scattered across it.

"Sienna?" Pearl called, dragging her back to reality. "You know what that means?"

She wished she didn't. "Yeah, I think so. _Shit_." Sienna gave the phone back and gripped her cane with both hands. It, along with her entire body, couldn't seem to stop shaking, no matter how much effort she put into getting herself in order. "As if things weren't bad enough already."

Pearl looked at her in concern, before realization dawned on her. "Grimm?" She glanced at the phone and became deathly white. "All over the city?"

Sienna nodded gravely. She returned to the sofa and fell there, feeling like a useless bag of bones and meat. Why couldn't the horrors just stop for a while? Was this all that was reserved for her for the rest of her life, one crisis after the other, until she couldn't take any more?

"This is so…" Pearl shook her head. "What do we do?"

Sienna looked up at her, astounded. "We?"

"Yeah! We've gotta do something, right?" Pearl said. "We've gotta."

And what use would that be, Sienna wanted to ask. Something equally or even more terrible would befall them next, and again after that, an endless cycle of futile struggling and suffering.

But then she saw that, as dismayed as Pearl appeared to be, that was nothing compared to the bravery in her eyes. It seemed that, no matter what happened, Pearl would keep fighting, until there was no fight left to be had.

And here Sienna was, nearly two decades her senior, acting like the world was about to end and somehow that was all about her. But it wasn't.

It was never about her.

"You're absolutely right. We have to do something, and we will," Sienna said, standing up. "Bring me Corsac."

* * *

Hearing was the first sense to return to Blake. Fire all around her, one moment a deafening inferno, the next a gentle crackling, like a fireplace. And voices, perhaps – she couldn't be sure what was real and what wasn't.

Then sight. She looked down and saw scorched grass under her, and as she moved her head in a circle, she was met with reds and yellows so bright it hurt her eyes. There was rubble everywhere, broken stone and concrete and marble, and splintered, burning wood. Glass too, reflecting the light of the fire, a ghastly show of colors.

Everything else came right after, and nearly all was supplanted by the blistering heat. She pushed herself to her feet and stumbled forward uneasily, moving on instinct to escape the hellish scene, but she barely took three steps before the heat became unbearable and she was forced to retreat. The fire was too intense in that direction – and every other one, she realized upon scanning the burning walls that surrounded her.

If only she weren't so weak and disoriented from her fight with Ilia, as well as the explosion and her fall. Perhaps she would have been able to make a mad sprint through the fire otherwise. But as she was, she feared she would lose her strength and burn to a crisp before she emerged on the other side.

This couldn't be how it ended. There had to be some way-

A shadow fell before her, and Blake didn't realize it was a Grimm until it was an instant away from closing its beak around her skull. She ducked, and the Griffon clipped her scalp, causing her a sharp pain on the top of her head. She hopped back as the Grimm rose on its hind legs, slashing the air with its talons and unfurling its great black wings.

She couldn't run, and she had no room to maneuver around the creature. Only one option remained, then. Blake drew her blade as the Griffon landed its front legs and thrust out its neck to take a chunk off her neck. She avoided its snapping beak by a hair and buried her weapon under it. The Grimm shrieked and trashed in agony, but she held fast, keeping it at reach for as long as possible – until it was a second away from turning to smoke, and then she let go and kicked its chest, sending it tumbling towards the fire.

The Griffon exploded, and the smoke its disintegrating body left behind pushed the flames away, clearing a path. Blake took no moment to revel in her genius, and took to a sprint immediately, dashing across the scorched ground as fast as she could. It was well she did, as soon the fire was licking at her skin again, threatening to overtake her, and she had to cover her nose to keep the smoke from filling her lungs.

Finally, she broke free, the cool air hitting her like a long-awaited bath. She fell to her knees coughing, and weakly dragged herself forward – the further she could get from the fire, the better. It took her a while to realize there was a pair of hands helping her with the task, pulling her away by the shoulders.

"Blake!" Sun shouted. "Are you okay?"

He let go of her, and she coughed a bit more before she was able to speak properly. "I'm fine. What – where did you come from?"

"I was getting these other people away from the fire and the Grimm," Sun said, gesturing around them. They were now in Cobalt's front yard, and his paralyzed or unconscious guards were laid out on the grass at a safe distance. "I'm so glad you're okay. I thought you were a goner when the house blew up. I wanted to go in and find you, but the fire was too much."

"T-that's okay," she muttered. "Thank you."

"Blake, you're probably not gonna be happy to hear this, but I already called for reinforcements. The situation's gotten a little out of control."

Blake nodded. She couldn't say she disagreed with his decision. But it did pose a few problems.

"Here's the thing: I think they might take a while," Sun said. "There's Grimm everywhere in the city."

"W-what?" Blake looked at him, startled.

"Yeah. Turns out Sienna wasn't wrong when she gave all those ticking time-bomb speeches." He shook his head ruefully. "It doesn't matter. Right now, we can only worry about what's going in front of us. Blake, what happened inside there? Did you stop Ilia?"

Blake felt like a bucket of cold water had been dropped on her. She rose to her feet and looked at the fire, struggling to breathe. She could see shadows amidst the flames now, prowling dark shapes, their evil intents evident even through the burning veil. They were all close to one another, circling around the same area, and evidently disinterested by the easy prey outside. Blake knew too much about Grimm to think that was mere luck.

"I did. But I need to get her out," she said. "I need to go back in."

"Blake, that's insane. You'll die!" Sun exclaimed. "If Ilia is anywhere as strong as you, she'll find her way out too."

"You don't know that. And Cobalt's somewhere in there too, and he's not like us." Blake steeled herself. "I can't just sit by and hope."

Sun cursed under his breath. "Fine. You go. I'll be here to help when you come back."

Blake nodded, and ran back into the fire, straight towards the Grimm. She moved fast, but speed could only do so much to protect her. Her Aura safeguarded her from serious burns, but it was draining fast. Once it was gone, she would be in deep trouble.

It was lucky, then – ironically so – that she came across the first Grimm so fast. She pounced on the Beowolf's back before it became aware of her approach, and two quick stabs made short work of it, one at the back of its neck, the other on its head. The ensuing smoke repelled the flames temporarily, giving her the time to find her way forward and continue her advance.

Another Grimm crossed her path almost immediately, an Ursa this time, and in her haste to kill it quickly and buy herself more time, Blake went straight for its throat. It was a mistake to underestimate it. Her blade bounced off the beast's claws, and then she was on the ground, her left ear ringing. The fire closed in…

Grunting past the pain, Blake spun on the ground, lashing out with her ribbon. It wrapped around the Ursa's legs, and a harsh pull brought it tumbling down. Blake jumped on top of it and sliced its neck. Wrapped in the smoke, she ran onward…

And emerged in a safe haven amidst the inferno. Safe from the fire, that is. Her heart jumped to her throat when she saw Ilia there, surrounded by Grimm, and with an unconscious Cobalt between her feet. She had her fists raised to fight off the Grimm, but the fear in her eyes was immense – and it would be the end of her if this went on much longer.

Blake tossed her blade, and it buried into the forehead of a Beowolf behind Ilia, killing it instantly. Ilia screamed in fright, then she saw Blake, and her skin shone yellow and orange and pink and-

"Ilia!" Blake shouted. "Fight!"

Ilia blinked, her skin returning to normal. She stepped forward and threw a punch at an Ursa, and it went staggering back towards Blake. With a whip of her ribbon, Blake caught its arm, then swung it around and launched it into the fire, where it quickly turned to smoke.

The rest of the Grimm converged on Ilia, and all that Blake could see of her then was a furious flurry of limbs. Every impact sent the monsters away from her, stunned, but not at all defeated. Her Semblance evidently had some effect on them, but it wasn't nearly as effective as with humans and faunus. It didn't seem to take them any longer than five seconds to recover from her attacks.

All she could do was buy herself time. And unlike her, Grimm did not easily tire. Sooner or later, Ilia would be overwhelmed.

All that, Blake rationalized in some small part of her brain. But what bade her to move, to throw herself into the fray without a second thought to her own safety, was something much simpler, and at the same time much harder to explain.

She jumped over an Ursa and landed behind Ilia, snatching her blade off the ground. That same feeling seemed to possess Ilia then, as she pressed her back to Blake's, and they stood together over Cobalt, face-to-face with the murderous Grimm.

"You hit them," Blake said over the raging fire. "I finish them." She spun her blade in one hand, and let her ribbon hang from the other. "And, Ilia… Don't be afraid."

And then they were moving, locked in a circling dance amidst the legion of Grimm, more of which seemed to arrive by the second. But they didn't falter, not for an instant, Ilia unleashing upon the Grimm a force that would demolish a person, and Blake stepping in after, lithe and swift, to eliminate them with slashes and stabs.

Sometimes there appeared to be a dozen of them at once, a result of Blake using her Semblance almost subconsciously. Even the Grimm's frightening predatory instincts couldn't surpass the confusion that caused, and they were rendered then as little more than stationary targets, lambs to the slaughter.

It was as exhilarating as it was terrifying.

And then it was over. The last Grimm fell to the ground with a slashed throat and dissipated, and for a while, Blake and Ilia continued to spin around each other, expecting the next claw or bite. Blake was the first to realize they had won. She stopped moving, and Ilia bumped into her a moment later and stopped too.

Despite the fire, everything felt impossibly silent.

"You okay?" Blake asked quietly.

Ilia nodded. "You?"

"Yeah."

Ilia walked away from Cobalt, then turned to face her, trembling at the shoulders. "How… How do you do this, Blake?"

"I don't know," Blake said. "You get used to it."

Ilia looked at her like she was mad, then slowly lowered herself to the ground, and became silent. Blake bent down and touched Cobalt's neck to check his pulse. He wasn't well, but he was alive.

"Did I do this?" Ilia asked.

"No," Blake said immediately, then took a moment to think. "This was bound to happen eventually. But we drew these Grimm to us with our fight. Cobalt, too."

"So, yes."

Blake looked around. The fire seemed to have died out somewhat – perhaps the sheer amount of Grimm they'd killed was a factor for that. She could probably carry Cobalt out through it now, though it would be safer to wait out a little more to see if help would come.

"I'm sorry," Ilia muttered. "I didn't want this to happen."

Blake turned to look at her. "What _did_ you want to happen, Ilia?"

By the time she realized what she had said, it was too late to take it back. Ilia balled her fists, and Blake saw her eyes brimming with tears.

"I just wanted him to pay for what he did," Ilia said. "Somebody needs to pay. It can't just… It can't be like this. He kills people just because they're faunus. And somehow he doesn't deserve to die?"

"It doesn't work like that, Ilia," Blake said. "It's a vicious cycle. He kills people, and then you kill him. Eventually it gets to be your turn. And on and on…"

"So what? As long as he's on the ground…"

Blake walked to Ilia and kneeled in front of her. "Let's say you do kill Cobalt, and everyone that works for him disappears. No more Cleansers," she said. "It wouldn't make a difference. Because for every Cleanser out there, there's a thousand other humans who think and behave just the same way, except they don't go by that name. And what you tried to do here just gives them more room to act."

"Oh, so it's _my_ fault they hate faunus?" Ilia spat. "I should just _leave them alone_ , like it's only right. Damned if I do, damned if I don't."

"I didn't say that," Blake said. "You think I don't want to leave him here to burn either? Things would be so much easier if we could just get rid of humans like him, just like they do to us. But we can't do that, Ilia. The rules are different for us and them. They shouldn't be, but they are."

"Goddamnit, Blake, I didn't _choose_ to represent a billion freaking strangers just because I was _born_ like them!" Ilia exclaimed. "I just want to make things right. I want to live happy and free, with the people I care about, with _my parents_ – but I don't get to do that, because of _people like him_!"

"I know," Blake said. "I want the same thing, Ilia. We all do." She reached forward and cupped Ilia's face in her hands. "We can't force the world to change. We can only work to make it better."

Ilia bit her lip and slowly leaned forward, burying her face on Blake's shoulder. Blake felt her sobbing weakly, and raised her hand to cradle her head. She ran her fingers through Ilia's hair, and wished everything was different.

"I'm sorry," Ilia said brokenly. "I screwed up. I wanted to make things better, but I just made them worse. I'm sorry." She drew in her breath and pulled back, looking at Blake solemnly. "You should leave me here. Then none of this will have happened. You… You were just here at the right time to save Cobalt."

"You attacked him, Ilia. And the police station. It wouldn't work," Blake said. "And I would never leave you here. Never."

"Then what, Blake? Do I just… disappear?" Ilia closed her eyes. "I have… I have to make up for what I did, d-don't I?"

"…Yes."

" _How_?"

Ilia looked at her, and Blake felt the world crashing down around her.

_You're so afraid of doing wrong…_

"Ilia," she said, her mouth dry. "Do you trust me?"

Ilia nodded readily. Blake's heart twisted inside her chest.

"Remember what your parents used to tell you to do?"

* * *

"Stay together! Do not fucking run! I see one of you dumbasses making a run for it and I'll put a bullet in you myself!"

Despite the rampant chaos that permeated the city, Police Chief Orre still managed to make himself heard by his subordinates. Even the terrible noises the Grimm made couldn't best the raw power of his lungs, it seemed. He was a force to be reckoned with, an ox of a man with the rage of one too, reducing to ashes every Grimm he could get him aim on. Terrifying.

And yet not nearly as terrifying as the enemy. Suntide hadn't seen such a widespread attack by the Grimm since one year ago, when their existence had been revealed to the world, but even then things hadn't seemed as bad. Word was Beacon had deployed every available unit in the region to defend the population, but the police had yet to see any such agents in action. The Hunt had been alerted too, supposedly, but there was an ocean of distance between them and Vacuo.

That left the police as the city's only line of defense, and they were vastly unprepared. They lacked the firepower and the expertise to fight the Grimm, and it showed. The Grimm were intelligent. They knew that to partake in the spoils, they first had to take out any and all opposition, and so they'd slowly corralled the cops deeper into the city, until they were all at the same downtown plaza, cut off from the rest of the world. If any help was coming, chances are they would never get to them in time.

And the Chief seemed none the wiser to it.

"What the hell are you doing?!" he shouted, looking over his shoulder. "I wanna see you shooting! I wanna see fire and smoke! What are you waiting for?!"

"S-sir… I don't think we can do anything," one of his cops said, his fingers trembling around his gun. "They've got us dead, sir."

The Chief whirled around, and half the force dropped to the ground below the line of fire of his gun. "You think? I didn't order you to think, I ordered you to shoot!" he shouted. "No excuses! Either you fight or you die! So get your acts together, pick up your guns, and for God's sake, don't take your eyes off the goddamn-"

Before he could get his last word out, a Nevermore descended from the skies and swallowed him whole. The Grimm shook its feathers, then took off again, leaving the stunned cops behind.

"Welp." One of them said as the collective shock faded. "I'm not the only one who's kinda happy that just happened, right?"

"Nope."

"Right there with you."

"We're still dead, though."

The horde of Grimm closed in on them, baring fangs and claws, and the cops drew together, covering each other's backs. The Chief had been a been a terrible leader, but he'd had one thing right – they would not go out crying. They counted the seconds as the Grimm approached, readying their weapons…

And then a cacophony of screeching tires and warcries reached them. The Grimm halted – and suddenly a line of vehicles entered the plaza and broke through the horde. Dust beams and rounds streaked through the air, opening holes in the creatures' ranks.

"Beacon?!"

The vehicles pulled up next to the cops, and the people inside came pouring out. All faunus, wielding the newest and most potent models of Dust weapons from the SDC. Their faces were hidden behind masks just as frightening as the Grimm's faces.

"Oh shit," a cop whispered. "It's the White Fang."

"What the hell are they doing here?"

A lieutenant, one of the late Chief's closest men, snorted and spat on the floor. "What do you think? They're seizing the opportunity to take us out."

But aside from a few hostile looks, the White Fang gave the cops no mind. They spread out in a circle around the police, and moments later they were firing off into the frenzied Grimm, slowly whittling down their numbers.

"Doesn't seem like that's the case." The same cop from before said, and took a step forward to address one of the faunus. "Hey! Can you guys lend us some of that stuff?"

The faunus looked back at him, her lips forming a displeased line.

"Come on, now," the cop said. "We've got jobs to do. Let us help you out."

The faunus made an irritated noise, then gestured at her comrades still at the vehicles. After a moment's hesitation, they started to bring out more Dust weapons from the back of the cars, and handed them out to the cops as they approached.

"Don't make us regret this," one of the faunus muttered.

"We won't," a cop replied, raising his new Dust cannon and joining the White Fang's circle. "Let's party, friends."

* * *

Blake and Ilia stumbled out of the fire, carrying a barely-conscious Cobalt between them. Sun caught up to them quickly and helped get him away from the flames.

"Hey," he said as he led them towards the two police cars on the limits of the property. "You two okay? What happened?"

Blake gave him silence. Her face was an emotionless mask, but he thought he could see through it – she was in pain, and she was afraid, and neither was because of the fire and the Grimm.

Ilia also looked shaken, but when she spoke, her voice was surprisingly calm. "Everything will work out like it's supposed to."

Before he could ask what she meant, Cobalt raised his head a bit and blinked, seemingly become aware of what was happening – and who was around him. When his eyes fell on Ilia, he broke from her and Blake's grasp and jumped on the grass, dragging himself away desperately.

"G-get away from me, you freak of nature!" he hollered. He looked at Blake and jumped behind her, grabbing her legs like a trembling child. "Get her away from me! Protect me, please, I beg you!"

Blake looked back at him, then at Ilia, and the fear Sun had seen on her face vanished – though it didn't leave her eyes. "Don't worry, Councilman. I won't let her hurt you."

Ilia clenched her fists and raised her chin, as if challenging Blake to keep that commitment. Sun looked at the two of them, wondering if they'd finally gone completely mad.

The other cops reached them a few seconds later, having caught the scene from afar. "Mister Councilman!" one of them said. "Are you alright? What happened here?"

"She tried to kill me," Cobalt said, pointing a finger at Ilia. "She invaded my home and tried to kill me!"

The cop pushed Ilia away and locked a pair of handcuffs around her wrists. She didn't put up a fight.

"And her?" The cop nodded towards Blake, his eyes lighting with recognition.

"She saved me," Cobalt said. "She did your job for you, you useless-" He took a shaky breath and pointed again at Ilia. "You'll see to it that she gets what she deserves. She tortured me – she was going to kill me! You're going to rot in Hell, _faunus_ , you and all your depraved kind!"

Ilia stared at him for a moment, before her lips parted in a slight grin. "Sure. And you'll be right there with me," she said. "But, for your consideration, I'm _not_ a faunus."

"Liar!" Cobalt shouted. "Your sins know no end!"

"She's not lying," Blake said softly.

" _What_?" Cobalt spat, and Sun almost echoed him.

The cop looked from Ilia to Cobalt, then at Blake. "That true? Is she a faunus or not?"

"She is!" Cobalt insisted, and Sun wouldn't have been surprised if he started to foam at the mouth. "I saw it right in front of my eyes! Her skin, it changed!"

Ilia looked down at her arms, and Sun held back a gasp. Her spots were gone. There wasn't a trace of them – it was like they'd never even existed.

"You saw what you wanted to see," Blake said, and looked at Sun and the cop. "I've been following her since she attacked the precinct, and I can say for sure that she's not a faunus."

"But… but she…" Cobalt's voice vanished.

"So… this individual attacked the Councilman in his house, and you came to his rescue?" the cop asked. "I'm afraid I'll have to take you in to answer some questions, Miss Belladonna. Unless you're, well…" He looked towards the sky. "Busy."

Blake frowned in contemplation, and Sun glared at her the best he could without his colleagues suspecting something. If she was planning on dumping this crazy fabricated story on him then skipping off to risk her life again… Well, he would not be very happy with her, for various reasons.

"Actually, guys," another cop said, coming from the cars. "We just got good news. I think. The Grimm situation's under control now, or it should be soon."

"Huh? What happened?" Sun asked.

"The White Fang happened. They just rolled up, I guess, and they exterminated the Grimm. So, cheers for us not having to fight the big bad monsters," the cop said, unsurely. "And cheers for the terrorists…?"

Sun looked at Blake, and she shrugged, apparently as in the dark as he was about that.

"I guess I'm not busy, then," Blake said. "I'll be happy to help, officers."

She was silent for a moment, before she reached for her bow and untied it. The charred fabric expired at her touch. She tossed it to the side, and it turned to ash before it hit the grass.

"Where do we start?"

* * *

**THREE WEEKS LATER**

* * *

"Today's the big day, then?"

Sienna downed the last of her coffee. Well, this cup, at least. Her third. Or fourth.

"Obviously. I shouldn't have to tell you, Detective," she said. "Not only because of your _being_ a Detective, and a very vigilant one at that, but also because I'm drinking coffee." She pursed her lips, displeased at the lingering aftertaste. "And I hate coffee."

"Yeah, me too," Sun said. "It makes me jumpy."

Sienna looked at his ceaselessly-moving tail and raised an eyebrow. "I can imagine how that might be annoying."

She put her mug down on her desk and dragged her chair back a little.

"So, why the early visit, Mister Detective? I can't imagine this is just a social call," Sienna said. "God knows that's not something I get to enjoy these days."

"Yeah… Sorry. I just wanted to catch up on some stuff," Sun said significantly. "Corsac, mainly."

Sienna rubbed her forehead. Great. Because her day wouldn't have been stressful enough if it didn't start with that.

"What about the bastard?" she half-said, half-groaned. "He stabbed some poor girl's back again or something?"

"Not that I know," Sun said. "It's just that I've been tracking him since you sent him away. Which, by the way, I still don't like that he's not in prison. But whatever. Just put _that_ on the list of recent decisions I don't agree with."

Sienna looked at him, largely unimpressed. "Your point, Sun?"

"Well, he hasn't told anyone about… you know. Like he was told," Sun said. "In fact, he hasn't talked with anyone. At all. Which is what gets me worried. Either he's _really_ feeling the guilt now – which would be only right, don't get me wrong – _or_ …"

"Or he's afraid," Sienna said. "Like he should be."

"Yeah," Sun said. "I just don't know if it's you he's afraid of."

Sienna shrugged. She supposed she should be worried about the implications, but try as she might, she couldn't feel anything but contempt for Corsac at this point.

"We'll deal with that when, or if, we get to it," Sienna said. "Anything else?"

"Well… There's Viktor," Sun said quietly. "He's settled in well. Made it back to his hometown and everything, after all those years."

Now, Viktor was another story… She couldn't lie and say she hadn't hated the sight of him at first, but it hadn't taken long for her feelings about him to change. He'd done horrific things, some of which had personally affected her, but in the end, he was more of a victim than even her. She couldn't stand to be close to him, but…

"Good. I'm happy for him," she said. "And no one has a clue who he really is?"

"Nope. No sign of any Cleansers hounding him or anything. I told him to keep an eye out, but for now, he's safe," Sun said.

"And you'll think he'll be okay with the lot he's been given?" Sienna asked, a tinge of sadness in her voice. "I know being _allegedly_ dead is better than being _actually_ dead, or in prison, or whatever, but still… That can't be an easy thing to live with."

As far as public knowledge went, Ilia Amitola had kidnapped Viktor from under police custody, interrogated him about his Cleanser allies, then killed him and disposed of his body _somewhere_.

Yeah, Sienna wouldn't blame him if he couldn't adjust well after everything.

"It's bad, yeah. But he's gone through a lot worse before," Sun said. "He actually sounded kinda relieved on the phone. Like he was finally free of everything. He even told me his real name is-"

"Hopefully that sticks," Sienna said, and clapped her hands above her lap. "So, all the loose ends are accounted for, for now. Marvelous. Barring any last-minute surprises, I suppose we are good to go!"

Sun looked nowhere near as satisfied as her – which was rather impressive, considering she was barely satisfied herself. He'd told her during one of their earlier talks that he didn't like the term _loose ends_. According to him, there was rarely a good context where that to be used in.

"You know what, Sun?" Sienna said. "I had my doubts at first, but you did the right thing, revealing the Cleansers. I thought it would lead to pandemonium, but I've been pleasantly surprised by the effects so far. Sure, not everything's been set right…"

"Cobalt's still walking free," Sun said bitterly. "And doing well in the polls, too."

"Yes. But we're tossing his associates behind bars, one by one. Who knows, one day it might be his turn," Sienna said. "You're a good man, Sun Wukong."

"Oh, am I now?" Sun wiggled his tail, tapping her desk with it. "You're not just saying that because I'm ruggedly handsome?"

"You must not know what _ruggedly_ means. And please keep your shirt buttoned, Detective." Sienna grinned. "No. You know what I mean. You've got a good head on your shoulders, and an admirable sense of right and wrong. And not just regarding the law, mind you."

Sun crossed his arms, and Sienna had to keep from pulling on his tail. Couldn't he just take a compliment, for once?

"All I'm saying is, I would be happy if the two of us continued working together for the good of Vacuo," Sienna said. "And, to be agonizingly clear, I don't mean in _this_ capacity. Just… There's a lot to be done. Your support as a member of the police, and as a friend, would go a long way."

Sun was silent for a moment, then he shrugged. "I guess I'll keep that in mind."

"That's all I can ask for," Sienna said. "That's all?"

"No. Now, what I'm _officially_ here for," Sun said. "Do you want extra security at your event tonight? We're a little worried _someone_ might try to hurt you and your supporters."

Had he offered her something like that a few weeks ago, she probably would have refused, out of pride or something equally stupid. But she knew now that it wasn't only her safety that was at stake. That, and she wasn't as brave as she used to be, in some regards…

She tapped her injured leg mindlessly. She wasn't looking forward for a repeat of that anytime soon.

"Thank you, Detective. That would be greatly appreciated," Sienna said. "And will you by any chance be making an appearance tonight?"

"I don't think so. I've got a lot of work today… and tomorrow… and every other day," Sun said, grimacing. "Promotions are overrated. Besides, I've already got a pretty good idea of who's gonna win, so watching the results come in feels pretty pointless."

"That's _some_ vote of confidence. I'll try not to disappoint you." Sienna stood up and offered her hand. "It was a pleasure to have you, Detective."

"Councilwoman-to-be." Sun bowed slight and gave her a wink, then turned to exit her office.

As she sat down, Sienna raised a hand. "Oh, and Sun?"

He stopped at the doorway and looked back at her.

"Have you seen Blake at all lately?" Sienna asked, folding her hands on her desk.

"Aside from on the news?" Sun didn't meet her eyes. He seemed far away all of a sudden. "No. We cross paths every so often, but she's busy." Or avoiding him. "We haven't really talked since Ilia's trial."

"So I imagined," Sienna said, trying not to sound disappointed. "I sent her an invite. Hopefully, she'll come."

Sun smiled. "Yeah. Hopefully."

Sienna could only be so amused. In her honest opinion, as far as inside jokes went, this one wasn't all that funny.

* * *

Today was her seventh day in prison. Ilia liked to think she was adjusting well. After all, it wasn't like she'd been living comfortably before. In fact, life had become much easier in some ways – she didn't have to worry about getting food or finding a place to sleep where she wouldn't freeze or have a heat stroke.

Of course, neither the food nor the bed she was given were any good, but… They existed. She would always have them when needed. It was the kind of security she hadn't known for years, and she was glad for it.

That was what she kept telling herself, at least. Sometimes it was all she could do to keep herself sane.

They'd put her in a wing separated from the larger facility, because of her powers and, well – because she was a murderer. A _violent_ murderer. She couldn't be trusted to be around the other inmates. Her own safety was also a concern, supposedly, but Ilia was certain the majority of the wardens wouldn't give a damn if something happened to her.

Maybe they were right to be concerned. She was allowed out of her cell once a day to exercise and feel the sun on her skin for a while. That was the only time she saw the other inmates. They kept away from her… especially the ones she recognized as Cleansers. She mustn't be very subtle about how she felt about them.

Those were the hardest moments, when in just a quick stride she could reach those monsters and give them the beating they deserved. Who could stop her in time? No one.

There was no reason for her to ever do something like that, of course. These people were monsters, but they were already being punished. She only had these fantasies because…

She was angry. And bitter. And hopeless. The biggest monster of all, Cobalt himself, was still free, and Ilia doubted she would ever have the pleasure of sharing her new home with him. And yet _she_ was here. She was being punished, and he wasn't.

 _No._ She wasn't here to be punished. She was here to atone. To give the faunus of Vacuo a future. To do the right thing, for once. That was what she had agreed to.

Blake had sworn to her that she wouldn't let her suffer for nothing. That she would make something of her sacrifice. So Ilia kept her head down, and hoped that Blake would keep her word.

What else could she do at this point?

* * *

"This doesn't feel right," Sienna said quietly, overlooking the bustling crowd at the end of the stairs and beyond. "Is your skin crawling too?"

"A little bit," Pearl said beside her. "But my arms are kinda cold, so…"

"I did warn you to put on a coat over that dress of yours. But you had to insist…"

Pearl gave her a warning look, and Sienna nodded apologetically.

"I'm nervous, if you couldn't tell," she said.

"Yeah, I can tell, _as well as_ you've told me three times already," Pearl noted. "Would it help if I told you to relax? _Again_?"

"No, it wouldn't, evidently."

Sienna turned away from the crowd, glad that she wasn't yet the center of attention. Suddenly she very much regretted inviting half the city to watch the results with her. Would it have been so indecorous if she'd done so at home, alone and under a dozen blankets?

"I'm sorry. If I knew I would turn into a nervous wreck, then…" She rubbed the corner of her eyes. God, she wished she had something to drink. Coffee, even. "This is just embarrassing."

Pearl looked at the crowd in deep thought. She crossed her arms, and as she did so, her shoulders squared and rose a bit. Sienna was a bit startled to find she almost reached her height now. Could Pearl really have grown so much in so little time?

"Just think of it this way," Pearl said. "All these people came here because of you. Because of what you mean to them. To Vacuo. Imagine how nervous _they_ must be. I mean, how can they be sure they're not making a huge mistake?" She nodded. "It's your job to reassure them, even if you're a mess yourself."

Or maybe it wasn't her height that made such a striking difference.

"Of course," Sienna said, and was surprised to find herself smiling. "As always, you are the voice of reason I so desperately need."

"Well, duh. What else would you keep me around for, my endless wit and-" Pearl interrupted herself to sniff the air around them. "Say, is that pudding I'm smelling?"

"Yes… But that's for after," Sienna said. "You can have as much pudding as you want, _after_."

Pearl rolled her eyes, but gave no further objection.

"Well then, I suppose I should address the crowd before I lose my nerve again," Sienna said.

Pearl gave her a pat on the back, and Sienna started walking down the stairs. She felt like a lame duck, hobbling down one step at a time while her cane flailed in her grasp. It became only harder to keep her composure as she felt every eye in the room turn to her.

She stopped near the bottom of the stairs and stared at crowd. It was odd, how paralyzed she felt. She didn't remember how many speeches she'd given during her time as Chieftain, but they had been many, and she'd easily tripled that number during the campaign. But it felt different now. Final – even as she was certain more speeches awaited her in the future.

"Greetings, everyone. Thank you for coming tonight," she began tentatively. "I would raise a glass in the spirit of companionship, but _unfortunately_ , I seem to be lacking a drink right now."

She chuckled, and the crowd echoed her. Good. She'd found her footing. Now it was just a matter of not breaking a leg.

"So, please, if you can be bothered to humor a parched woman," she said, gesturing. "Raise your glasses for me. And then one more time, for all of us. We got this far together, ladies and gentlemen – let's not forget to bask in the moment."

From one end of the room to the other, everyone raised their glasses, the lights reflecting off of them, and Sienna couldn't help but smile. A waiter approached her, and she took her own glass of wine to raise.

"You know, I've talked a lot about my plans these past few weeks. I've talked and talked so much, I've exhausted myself. And I'm sure some of you are exhausted of listening to the same speeches over and over, too," she said. "I don't want to talk about my plans. I don't want to talk about me."

"The truth is, I'm no one special. The only reason I'm in this position instead of any one of you is because I – you might already know this – well, I've had some past _notoriety_ , if you'll pardon my lenient choice of words." She tilted her head a little to the side and sighed. "I wish things were different, but I believe that was precisely what we needed to get us to this point. We needed someone who could not be ignored, or… Well."

She shrugged and looked off into the distance, letting her silence speak for itself.

"But here we are today, to the discomfort of some who would rather we forever stay in the shadows. And we got here not because of me, but because of _you_ ," she said. "I've played my role, and I will continue to play it for as long as it's necessary. But whatever results await us tonight, the world has changed. We have changed it. And in four years, I expect you to follow my lead and leave me trailing in the dust! Hear!"

She raised her glass, and everyone followed suit.

"To the ones who fought when everything seemed lost! To the ones who stood up when the world beat us down! To the ones-"

Her voice failed her as she spotted something – someone – in the crowd, a flash of black amidst a sea of people, and two amber eyes.

"To us." She raised her glass higher, and it shook in her hands. "To all of us."

* * *

Sienna found Blake an hour later, once she'd found an excuse to flee from the endless flood of people who wanted to talk to her. She would have been glad to converse with all of them, had Blake's brief appearance not addled her brain so much. She just had to get away.

Blake was in a far corner of the room, near the windows that overlooked the city, engaged in conversation with Pearl. Though it looked more like she was listening to Pearl talk than actually conversing with her, which was predictable. Pearl could get very talkative when she was excited about something – and boy, did she look excited.

"-I don't know what I'm gonna call it, but I want it to be meaningful. It can't just be, I don't know, _Pearl's Help Center_ or stuff like that." Pearl groaned. "I'm just afraid I'm gonna regret the choice a couple years from now. Like when you're a teenager and you think something is the coolest thing in the world, and later you're so embarrassed of it but you're stuck with it?"

"Mhmm." Blake twirled her untouched glass between her fingers. "And you're still a teenager."

"Exactly!" Pearl hit her forehead. "Finally, someone gets it! So, will you help me come up with a name? You seem like you're good at that kinda stuff, Blake. _And_ you're loosely an adult. Please?"

Blake looked at her helplessly, and Sienna chose that moment to come in and rescue her.

"Are you telling her about your shelter project?" she asked, looking slyly at Pearl. "Who am I kidding, of course you are. You tell it to anyone who will listen. And everybody else too."

Pearl gasped and hit her in the arm. "Well it's important! Someone needs to take care of the vulnerable faunus of Suntide, and I don't see anybody else volunteering."

"I never said it wasn't important," Sienna said. "Hence my support."

Pearl crossed her arms and turned away a little, pretending to be angry. Sienna looked at Blake and raised an eyebrow, even as she searched the younger woman's face for a hint of what she was thinking. She'd gotten proficient at reading Blake's feelings, but it seemed tonight she was getting no luck.

"It's a marvelous idea, Pearl," Blake said. "I hope you can do everything you want with it."

"I'll see to it that she can," Sienna said. "To be honest, I've got an ulterior motive to support her. Even if I get elected, I'll still only hold one Council seat among eight. And I'll still be everything I am. It'll be difficult to get anything done without a fight, sadly."

"Wait, what are you getting on?" Pearl looked at her oddly. "This is the first I hear of this."

"I'm saying, even the most corrupt and bigoted of our current Council mummies won't be able to reject the funding for a shelter. It just wouldn't look good on them," Sienna said. "And they very much are wanting to look good right now."

"Oh. That's clever. You get a win in the Council, make everybody know you mean business…" Pearl smiled. "See? I'm such a genius, my plans have benefits that I don't even know about!"

Sienna was not amused. "Pearl, do you smell that? I think they're bringing the pudding out."

Pearl made a cooing noise and walked away briskly after promising Blake to talk to her later.

Sienna and Blake stood in silence for a moment, and Sienna couldn't help but feel responsible for it. Blake didn't _look_ particularly uncomfortable, but she had to be. Or maybe Sienna only thought that because she didn't want to be uncomfortable alone.

"So," Sienna said hesitantly. "I'm surprised. I didn't expect you to come."

Blake looked at her blankly. "You invited me."

"Right, I did. What I meant is…" Sienna took her glass to her lips, only to find it ruefully empty. And just when she needed it most. "I didn't see you until my speech. And I paid very close attention to everyone arriving. Call me paranoid."

"You must be losing your touch, then, because I arrived very early," Blake said. "I was swarmed with people wanting to talk to me. That must explain it."

"Uh-huh. So now you know how it feels to be the center of attention." Sienna glanced at Blake's ears. "How have you been treated since you came out?"

That got a reaction out of Blake at last, as she lowered her glass a bit and looked away with unsure eyes. "It's been good and bad."

"More good or more bad?" Sienna prodded.

"It's been _different_ ," Blake said. "But the people that matter have accepted me. I can't complain."

"You can and you should," Sienna said, and held Blake's shoulder. "It was a brave thing, what you did. I want you to know I'm very proud of you. And thankful."

Blake bowed her head for a moment before she met Sienna's eyes again.

"I liked your speech," she said. "But you sell yourself too short."

"You of all people should know I don't," Sienna said. "You know why I said all that stuff? It wasn't just for these people. They supported me, got me this far. But _you_ , Blake… You're well above the rest." She paused. "I won't forget what you did for me."

Blake's fingers closed tight around her glass, and Sienna feared for a moment that she might break it. "I didn't do it for you. I did it for…"

"Vacuo." Sienna nodded. "And you were right to do it. It might become unclear at times, but never forget that you did the right thing."

Blake stared at her, and Sienna felt as if she were being cut open by an ice-cold knife.

"I should be thanking you. You were the only reason I could go through with it," Blake said. "You told me to stop running. So I did. And here we are now."

It was Sienna's turn to look away. "I'm sorry about Ilia. I didn't want that for her."

Blake's expression softened. "Of course you didn't. You didn't have anything to do with it," she said. "I made her the villain, and myself the hero. _You_ were an actual hero when you rallied the White Fang. People just don't know about that."

"I don't know if I'd call myself a hero…" Sienna said.

"Exactly," Blake said firmly, and handed her glass over to Sienna. "Just don't waste what me and Ilia did, okay? Keep doing the right thing… and everything will work out like it's supposed to."

"…I'll do my best."

Blake nodded, and Sienna saw a flash of something in her eyes – guilt? She opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, when suddenly Pearl came to a sliding halt beside her, shaking Sienna's arm violently.

"What are you still doing here?!" Pearl exclaimed. "They've finished counting the votes already! We're gonna miss the-"

The room was taken by an uproar, and Sienna paled as she feared the worst. But then she realized – her supporters weren't shouting in anger or despair. They were happy.

They were celebrating.

_Uncle, I did it._

She turned to look at Blake with tears in her eyes… and found the space in front of her was empty. Sienna looked around, but Blake was gone.

"Come on!" Pearl pulled on her arm. "Everyone's waiting for you!"

"…Right." Sienna wiped her eyes and spilled half of Blake's borrowed drink. She laughed as she let Pearl drag her into the crowd.

* * *

_I'm waiting at the front._

Blake put her Scroll away and stepped out into the cold. She folded her arms and looked around, hoping to see a motorcycle coming around the corner – though she supposed she should be hoping for it to take a little longer instead.

Trying to avoid things she shouldn't be avoiding. Old habits die hard.

But she quickly learned that even a minute's wait wouldn't have saved her this time, as a police car parked in front of the building and Sun stepped out. He hopped onto the sidewalk, and a smile lit up his face when he saw her.

"Oh, wow, I actually caught you before you left!" he said as he walked over to her. "And here I was thinking you were going to bail on me."

"I was going to," Blake admitted. "But you're too fast. That desperate to see me, huh?"

"What can I say, I missed my partner!"

Blake rolled her eyes at him. She saw the badge hanging over his chest and hummed in interest. "You look right wearing that. How does it feel, not being a Rookie anymore?"

Sun balked. "W-what? I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Sure, you don't," Blake said, grinning.

Sun fiddled with his vest awkwardly and walked away a bit. "So, uh, what did you call me here for?" he asked. "Got a clue on some Cleansers? Or are we dealing with a new crazy hate cult?"

"I just wanted to talk, actually."

Sun looked back at her in plain disbelief. Blake would have been offended, but she was in agreement that this was an unprecedented move on her part.

"The truth is," Blake said slowly. "I'm leaving. And it felt wrong to leave without talking to you first."

"Oh. That makes more sense." Sun cleared his throat. "Where are you going?"

"Undecided," Blake answer swiftly. "I just… I wanted to apologize for pulling you into the mess I created. I know you don't like how things turned out, and how involved you got… It's my fault. I'm sorry."

Sun was silent for a moment, a pensive look on his face.

"It did become a mess," he said. "I wish things could have gone differently."

"So do I," Blake whispered. "And I think I had the power to make sure of that."

"Maybe. But you tried the best you could at the time, and that's what counts," Sun said. "At the end of the day, Blake, I went along with things of my own will. I could have ended everything, right? But I didn't… because sometimes things can't go perfectly, I guess." He shrugged. "The best we can do now is to do the right thing going forward."

"That's what I think, too," Blake said.

"Yeah!" Sun patted her on the shoulder. "But I'll accept your apology anyway, if it makes you feel better!"

Blake glared at him. How could one person be so insufferable?

God, she was going to miss him.

Her Scroll buzzed, and she heard the familiar humming of a motor nearing the building.

"If you ever need any help, don't be afraid to call, okay?" Blake told Sun, looking at him dead-on so he understood how serious she was being.

Sun snorted. "Why would I ever be afraid of you?" He laughed. "So you're leaving now? Don't you need a ride?"

"Thank you, but no," Blake said. "I already got one."

Finally, a motorcycle came around the corner and parked in front of them. Pyrrha removed her helmet and shook the hair out of her eyes, then waved at Blake.

"…Seriously?" Sun pouted. "No wonder you never wanna spend time with me."

Blake winked at him. "Are you jealous, partner?"

"Whatever. You and your redheads," he grumbled, then smiled at her. "See you someday, Blake."

Blake gave him a hug, then walked over to Pyrrha. She looked over her shoulder and saw just the end of his tail as he entered the building. It looked like he was going to be celebrating with Sienna, after all.

"Who was that?" Pyrrha asked. "A friend of yours?"

"Is that so hard to believe?" Blake said. "Yes. A very good one."

"That's nice," Pyrrha said warmly, then looked her up and down, and her face became quite severe. "Blake, where's your helmet?"

Blake blinked. "Are you serious?"

"…Only a little bit." Pyrrha handed over her own helmet. "Just to be sure."

Exasperated, but knowing they wouldn't go anywhere until she acquiesced, Blake put on the helmet. Pyrrha made room for her, and Blake sat behind her, grabbing her waist for support.

"So, home?" Pyrrha asked. "Or are you still entertaining that terrible idea of yours?"

Blake swallowed dry. She hoped Pyrrha didn't realize how much of a mess she was, but knowing Pyrrha, she'd noticed before Blake had even sat on the motorcycle.

"I… I am," Blake said. "But I still need your help. If you don't feel it's right…"

"Oh, I know it's not right. It's undeniably wrong, and if I were still an agent of Beacon, I would be arresting you right now," Pyrrha said. "But this wouldn't be the first time you suggested something stupid and reckless and I went against my better judgment to help you."

"So… You'll help?" Blake asked.

Pyrrha sighed. "Yes. It means a lot that you asked for help, even if you're late by about a month," she said, and pulled into the road. "Alright. Let's break some laws, then…"

* * *

Ilia poked her food with a plastic fork, hoping that it would spark some hunger in her. Predictably, it didn't, and she was all the more bitter for it.

She should be happy Sienna had won. That was the reason she was in jail, after all, to help secure that victory. But maybe she wasn't that altruistic of a person, after all, because the only thing she could think about was how she would be trapped here for decades, while the outside world advanced without her.

She should be happy she'd made a difference. She _was_ happy. But it didn't offset everything else.

There was no point in dwelling on those thoughts. Grunting in disgust, Ilia stabbed her food and slowly brought it to her mouth.

As she was about to bite down, all the lights went out. She jumped to her feet in reflex, and the food tray fell to the ground, spilling its contents everywhere. Her fists tightened, and she felt her heartbeat skyrocket.

_Cobalt. No, Adam. No-_

Blake.

She stopped in front of her cell, a shadow in the darkness, but perfectly visible to Ilia. She had her blade on display on her waist, but it wasn't drawn.

"Blake! What the hell are you doing here?!" Ilia looked behind Blake nervously. "You're a _little late_ for visiting hours!"

"Sorry. Couldn't wait." Blake took a deep breath, then raised her left hand, holding a set of keys. "I'm breaking you out."

"You are what- Blake, you're crazy! You've gotta get out of here!" Ilia exclaimed, grabbing her cell's bars. "They'll see you on the-"

"The cameras aren't working." Blake looked at the keys and quickly went through them, until she found the right one and stuck it on the door. "We've still gotta be fast. There's only so much time before someone checks on your cell."

Blake pulled the door open and gestured for Ilia to get out, but she found herself frozen where she stood.

" _Ilia_ ," Blake said firmly. "There's no time. We have to move."

"Blake, I… I can't leave," Ilia said. "I'm here for a reason."

"Sienna won. You don't have to be here any longer."

Blake was right. Ilia didn't _have to_ suffer for a crime she didn't commit. Still, she couldn't move, as much as she wanted to.

"They'll suspect Sienna," Ilia whispered. "If they find a connection…"

"They won't find a connection."

"They don't _need_ a connection. Just doubt will do it, and then everything's ruined." Ilia shook her head. "I can't go."

Blake looked over her shoulder, then stepped inside the cell and grabbed Ilia's wrist, leaning in so close their noses almost touched. "Was it Sienna who got us this far? Or was it me?"

Ilia looked at her doubtfully. "You… But this isn't right."

"I don't _care_ if it's right," Blake said angrily, before she took a step back and breathed for a moment. "I can't let you waste the rest of your life here. Screw Sienna, screw Vacuo… I'm doing something for _me_ , for once, and if everything goes to hell because of that? Then that's a problem that I can't fix."

She pulled on Ilia's wrist, and finally, Ilia's will broke, and she let herself be dragged out of her cell.

"For you?" Ilia asked in a small voice.

"Yeah," Blake said. "For us."

* * *

An hour later, Blake stood with Ilia at the side of the highway north of the city, farther away from the prison than any faunus could have gotten on foot. Pyrrha was waiting on her motorcycle a good distance back, giving them privacy so they could talk.

"This is insane," Ilia said. "Have I said this is insane yet? Because it is."

"You've said something along those lines," Blake replied. "Helps that I don't have to be the one to say it."

Ilia looked at her, trembling from head to toe, and Blake had to resist the urge to wrap her in a hug.

"What now, Blake?" Ilia asked.

"I don't know. Now, you're free, I guess," Blake said. "You'll have to hide your identity… Not that that's anything new." She shook her head as she remembered something, and took a phone out of her pocket. "I almost forgot. I got this for you. It… It has my number, and Sun's, if you ever need any help."

Ilia nodded numbly and took the phone. "What about you? What will you do?"

Blake bit her lip. She had something in mind, a plan she wanted to propose, but it would be dangerous and…

And she was very afraid of asking Ilia. But she was making an effort of not being governed by her fears anymore.

"Do you want to run away?" Blake asked. "Together, I mean?"

Blake thought Ilia's silence might just kill her. If it didn't, then the way she looked at her, so vulnerable and hurt, that would certainly do it.

"I don't want to put you through that…" Ilia mumbled. "You have a life and… and a job, and friends, and everything."

"They're not as important as you," Blake said. "None of it is."

"…Maybe you feel that way, but it's not really the truth," Ilia said. "I'm sorry, Blake. I think it's too late for that." She took a step back. "I can't do it."

Blake dug her fingernails into her palms, and somehow found the strength to smile. "O-okay. But if you ever need help… I-if we can drive you somewhere right now-"

"I'll find my own way," Ilia said. She stood there for a moment, then suddenly became one with the darkness. "Thanks."

And then Ilia was gone.

After an eternity, Blake walked back to Pyrrha, who offered her a sympathetic look, then took her hand and pulled her onto the motorcycle.

"So," Pyrrha said. "Home?"

Blake wiped a tear from her eye.

"Home."

* * *

**BLAKE BELLADONA WILL RETURN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, an interesting thing happened early on during this story's long run. Feel free to skip this note if you don't like semi-pretentious ranting from your fanfiction authors. It has no point to the greater RSU - which, if you're curious, will be continuing with something completely new very soon(tm)!
> 
> I'm not much of a political person. I've got my opinions on most issues, as is normal of a person with a brain, but politics itself? Bleh. Feels like brainwashy stuff most of the time, at least to me.
> 
> For those not aware, I live in Brazil. If you've heard any news from my country lately, it's probably about the attempted assassination of a certain presidential candidate late last year (he won the race, I don't like him one bit, that's neither here nor there). There was lots of talks about it being a set-up or not, everything you can imagine. And if you remember what happened to Sienna in this story?
> 
> Yeah. I had planned that from the very beginning, and when the real life stuff happened, I really pondered about changing that plot point. It just made me uncomfortable to write something that hit so close to reality, and it also made me feel a little foolish, to be honest. Things just aren't that neat in real life, you know? There are no clean-cut heroes and villains, no single great acts that change nations...
> 
> But I guess, in the end, I don't tell stories to paint a realistic take of humanity and the real world. You've gotta trust where the story takes you, let it speak for itself sometimes, and if that leads you to some inane bullshit in the end? Well, shucks. 
> 
> At least Sun was funny.


	11. "Clever Post-Credits Joke Title"

Sun had barely stepped into his apartment when he felt the urge to find the nearest comfortable surface and sleep for a week straight. This had been happening for some time now, him becoming supremely tired all of a sudden. Work as a full-blown Detective was hard. It almost wasn't worth not having Rookie attached to the title.

"Neptune!" he called, hearing the familiar noise of virtual-zombies being virtually-slain in the living room. "Do we have orange juice?"

The virtual-slaying continued for a while before Neptune poked his head around a corner and gestured at the kitchen. "Yup. I bought a whole bunch yesterday, 'cause I know how my bro likes his orange juice," he said. "You had dinner yet?"

"Too tired for dinner," Sun mumbled. "Want juice."

Neptune frowned. "That's troublesome." He shrugged. "Oh, well. Guess that's the Detective life for you. Oh, I had a full day also, following leads, tracking down shady people… I'm building a clientele, buddy, let me tell you-"

" _Mhmm_. Want juice."

Sun started towards the kitchen, but his legs failed him and he went down like a bag of potatoes. Just as he was about to hit the floor, however, a set of arms caught him and brought him back to his feet.

"Woah! That was close!" Sun exclaimed, wide awake all of a sudden. "Thanks, Nep! I think you just saved me from a concussion!"

"Uh, not to alarm you, bro," Neptune said slowly. "But it wasn't me who saved you."

He pointed, and Sun looked to the side and saw… himself. Except he was all golden, and mute, and made of light.

"Huh," Sun said.

"Huh," Neptune echoed.

The other Sun opened his mouth, but no noise came out. He seemed upset, but a second later he disappeared in a flash of light. It was like he had never been there in the first place.

Sun scratched his chin. "…I think I need to make a phone call."

* * *

Corsac fell to his knees.

He touched his forehead, then held his hand in front of his eyes, watching the blood drip down his fingers.

"I don't understand…"

"You don't understand _what_?"

Adam grabbed him by the back of his shirt, then dropped him again in the middle of the road. To each side of the road lay one half of Corsac's car, sliced cleanly in half, like a giant's sword had been run through it.

"You must understand why this is happening. Why else would you be running from me?" Adam grinned. "Or _trying to_ , that is. Unless you're that afraid of me that you don't need a reason?"

Corsac shook his head. "W-why? I'm loyal to you… To the real White Fang, still!" he gasped. "I'm not like my brother. I can still be of use to you… I know the truth about-"

"That isn't important to me," Adam interrupted. "The truth will come out when I want it to. Until then…"

Corsac didn't see Adam draw his sword, but he heard it leave its scabbard, then saw its red glow reflected on the asphalt in front of hm.

"You _are_ like your brother. Not totally. But you are both failures," Adam said. "And I have no room for that in my White Fang."

Even if Corsac had seen it coming, he couldn't have reacted to it. His head hit the road, and a second later, the rest of his body did the same.

"You're welcome, Sienna," Adam said to the night sky. "Now, you wait your turn…"


End file.
